Microsoft has obviously been keeping a close eye on the PS3’s folding@home project and decided that it can do better.

Peter Moore, the Microsoft games chief, has said that Microsoft is ready to listen to proposals for a 360 research project like the Folding@home initiative on the PS3.

Having a much larger ownership of Xbox 360s in place would greatly aid the project, Moore said thinking of how connected consoles can calculate huge amounts of data while running idle.

"If we truly believe that we can in some way marshal the resources of a much larger installed base of Xbox 360 owners, with a processor that's of equal power to the PS3, then you have my commitment that we'll look at that", Moore told The Mercury News.

"And if we believe we can add value to solving a gnarly problem such as medical problems and the health problems that Folding@home seems to be doing, we'll certainly look at that very strongly."