The D.E.A.D system creates an infinitely scalable environment for the evolving architectural organisms by operating across computers connected to the internet in a distributed manner. The system works upon the concept of grid computing, in which a series of networked computers is treated as if it were one massive, multi-processor, computer. The idea of the D.E.A.D system is to tap into unused processing time that is available on computers connected to the internet, whenever their users leave them idle.

The idea of using the idle time of all the networked computers on the internet is not new, it was originally used by Berkley University's Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (SETI) project in the late 90's. The SETI@home project was born for a lack of funding, produced when NASA cut off its grant to SETI in the mid 90s. The SETI project is to analyze signals collected from space using radio telescopes for possible signs of extra-terrestrial life. The amount of information that is gathered from radio telescopes on a daily basis requires a super-computer to analyze. Without the funds to purchase a super-computer, SETI turned to all of the computers on the internet and devised a mechanism to treat them as a massive distributed super-computer. SETI@home, the model for the distributed processing mechanism used by the D.E.A.D system, (see pictured at right) acts as a screen-saver on a home or office computer. When the computer is left on, but not in use, the screen saver starts. It connects to the internet to download data to process, processes the data, and uploads the information when done – providing an entrancing display of graphs and statistics while running. This method of using screen-savers as a means of processing data has been adopted by several institutions since it was begun by SETI, Oxford university is using it to test possible chemical compositions for a cure for cancer.

The D.E.A.D system would work in a similar manner, however instead of using the distributed network of computers purely for analysis the D.E.A.D project would use grid computing for generative purposes. Acting as a screen-saver it would connect to the internet to receive genes to start the growth of architectural organisms. The software would provide a window onto the bioreserve environment, displaying the growth of generations of architectural organisms. Each time a new organism is produced, its genome, and its physical attributes, are uploaded to a central server to be cataloged and archived – for possible 'harvesting' at a later date (see figure at left).