Commemorating the 70th anniversary of artificial ground freezing (AGF) technology in China, the authors detail its application status and propound development prospects. Owing to its high safety and reliability, excellent watertightness, and versatility, AGF has been widely adopted as a practical ground improvement technique, supporting extensive engineering practices. However, its application diversity and complexity account for a lack of comprehensive, systematic overviews. By exploring representative landmark engineering cases, existing AGF application complexities and technical developments across various fields are systematically summarized, analyzing the strengths and limitations. The review covers AGF applications in mine shaft sinking, shield tunnel end foundation improvement, cross-passage construction, underground shield-chamber intervention and shield docking, and emergency sealing and restoration; it pursues the promotion and application status of AGF across other fields. The following recent advances in key AGF construction technology are elaborated: the emergence and gradual application of low-temperature refrigerant-based artificial refrigeration technology in engineering, the integrated control of frost heave and thaw settlement in large-scale municipal freezing projects throughout the project design and construction, continuous improvement and innovation in freezing hole construction techniques to adapt to complex geological conditions, the development of multicircle-hole freezing process through deep shaft freezing with long-term practice, and the active application of intelligent technologies in freezing shaft sinking for prolonged freezing. Finally, this review addresses the current challenges of the practical engineering of AGF and the future by proposing six key development directions: the control of the environmental effects of large-scale freezing, the development of freezing technology based on the emerging low-temperature refrigerant, directional drilling of ultralong/ultradeep freezing holes, development of customized freezing designs and construction schemes for specific projects, development of more efficient and intelligent freezing technology, and the expansion of the application of freezing technology to other fields.