It is part of an experimental research project developed by the University of Washington, Center for Game Science, in collaboration with the UW Department of Biochemistry.

A 2010 paper in the science journal Nature credited Foldit's 57,000 players with providing useful results that matched or outperformed algorithmically computed solutions.

This can lead to creating novel proteins by design, advances in treating disease, and solutions for other real-world problems such as invasive species, waste, and pollution.

[6] Foldit's virtual interaction and gamification create a unique and innovative environment with the potential to greatly advance protein folding research.

Foldit attempts to apply the human brain's three-dimensional pattern matching and spatial reasoning abilities to help solve the problem of protein structure prediction.

[14] Foldit includes a series of tutorials where users manipulate simple protein-like structures and a periodically updated set of puzzles based on real proteins.

So, rather than only building a useful science tool, they used gamification (the inclusion of gaming elements) to make Foldit appealing and engaging to the general public.

The game's creator announced the plan to add, by 2013, the chemical building blocks of organic subcomponents to enable players to design small molecules.

Results of the VHL experiment were presented in a March 2023 preprint paper[26] and at an August 2023 American Chemical Society conference session.