Warning! Spoilers for Infinite Frontier: Secret Files #1 below.
As specifically created as DC's analog of Iron Man. Even Calvin Ellis, the Superman of Earth-23, who is a super-genius and one of the most powerful beings across space and time, needs help from time to time and Machinehead is just the person to give him an assist.
Machinehead is DC's answer to Iron Man. While his real identity (if there is a human under the suit) has never been revealed, he's shown to be a useful tool in the multiverse. First appearing as part of the Earth-8 team The Retaliators, Machinehead starred on a roster that featured even more pastiches of the Marvel Universe such as versions of Spider-Man (Bug), and the Hulk-like Behemoth. Even though his comic appearances were limited to Grant Morrison's epic The Multiversity, where he first met Calvin Ellis with his superteam, he just made a surprise appearance in Infinite Frontier: Secret Files as one of the few people President Superman can turn to when solving complex problems.
In Infinite Frontier: Secret Files #1 by Brandon Thomas, Joshua Williamson, Valentine De Landro, Marissa Louise, Triona Farrell, and Tom Napolitano, a day in the life of President Superman is revealed. He takes presidential meetings in the morning and battles giant robots just minutes later. Ellis realizes that time itself is his biggest obstacle and meets with Machinehead from Earth-8 in looking into physically creating more time. Ellis, a member of the Justice Incarnate, the strongest multiversal team ever assembled (seriously) with heroes hand-picked from each universe, turns to the hero when he can't come with a solution. That speaks volumes about Machinehead's ability as a scientist and hero.
Since President Superman, who might be the most accomplished Superman ever, turns to Machinehead for help, it automatically makes him one of the smartest people in the multiverse. Being able to create more time is seemingly impossible, but President Superman believes Machinehead is the one hero who could help him find out if it can be done.
Not to take anything away from Tony Stark, but with every triumph from Marvel's Iron Man, a massive misjudgment seems to come with it. Iron Man might have saved the Marvel Universe multiple times, but he's also been a bad actor in Civil War and the events that led to World War Hulk (to name a few), and has consistently allowed his tech to fall in the wrong hands. Iron Man even failed to save the multiverse in the Time Runs Out arc. He's certainly a great hero, but he's had some bumps along the way. Meanwhile, in the DC Universe, Machinehead is working with a Justice Incarnate member to figure out an answer to an impossible question - and it's possible he'll find a solution. In the DC Universe Machinehead is ultimately more important than Iron Man is in the Marvel Universe. It's that simple.
