60 Minutes – The unlikely, eccentric inventor turning inedible plant life into fuel

He’s right about that. He outsmarted MIT and now he’s lured some pretty powerful men to his board of directors, including former Shell Oil executive Sir John Jennings, and three former cabinet secretaries – Steve Chu of the Department of Energy, George Shultz, former secretary of state and former defense secretary, William Perry.

Bill Perry: Well, I thought he was another Thomas Edison.

Robert Armstrong, the former head of MIT’s chemical engineering department, joined Xyleco’s board of directors after Medoff told him about the electron beam accelerator, his inventive way of breaking down biomass.

Bob Armstrong: The electron beam is truly a game changer.