Seawater desalination has been peoples fond dream since ancient times, the dream is now becoming a reality. This paper presents a brief development history of reverse osmosis. Much attention was paid to innovative development in membranes, modules, equipments and applied technology, including asymmetric and composite membranes, spiral-wound element and hollow fiber module, energy recovery equipments and different technological processes. The extension of reverse osmosis, such as desalination, pre-concentration, integrated processes and nanofiltration, is also briefly mentioned. This paper presents a brief history of history of reverse osmosis. Much attention was paid to innovative development in membranes, modules, equipments and applied technology, including asymmetric and composite membranes, spiral-wound element and hollow fiber module, energy recovery equipments and different technological processes. The extension of reverse osmosis, such as desalination, pre-concentration, integrated processes and nanofiltration, is also briefly mentioned.