We have developed a new methodology to design conducting polymers with pre-specified properties. The methodology is based on the use of genetic algorithms (GAs) coupled to Negative Factor Counting technique. We present the results for a case study of polyanilines, one of the most important families of conducting polymers. The methodology proved to be able of generating automatic solutions for the problem of determining the optimum relative concentration for binary and ternary disordered polyaniline alloys exhibiting metallic properties. The methodology is completely general and can be used to design new classes of materials. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.