This company rents brains to PepsiCo and others with thorny problems

Xinova was recently spun out from Nathan Myhrvold's Intellectual Ventures

Say your company needs an invention, process or widget but the research guys are out of ideas. Who ya gonna call?

If you’re PepsiCo — or, for that matter, Meat and Livestock Australia — the answer is Xinova, a Seattle-based company that essentially rents out brainpower. Xinova has pulled together a network of 10,000 inventors, who have developed a range of products, from flour made from coffee byproducts to a coating that keeps cattle hides from turning into a tangled mess.

Jon McIntyre, who runs research and development for Pepsi’s global snacks business, is a customer and believer. He says Xinova’s strength