of course there is, you just don't hear about it. Incremental progress is not always news-worthy, but it certainly matters and is happening all of the time.
The only real example I can think of where huge amounts of public attention actually got results was in aerospace. We actually did get to the moon. After that, I struggle to think of examples.
Even so, getting to the moon was not something that public attention and funding just 'made happen'. Luckily, it happened to coincide with the invention of microchips and computer power shrinking down enough to fit in the nose of a shuttle. All of this required incremental progress that wasn't always in the limelight. Sure, the actual moon landing phase was, but not everything leading up to it.
Also, I would say Tesla is very much in the spotlight and making progress because of it, as one example.