In developing large-capacity gas turbines for use in power generation as the main machines in combined cycle power plants, MHI has made every effort to increase thermal efficiency. Since the 1980s when the commercial operation of power generation plants with a combustion temperature of 1100 deg.C began, the combustion temperatures have been increasing at a rate of approximately 20 deg.C per year. The maximum combustion temperature currently reaches about 1500 deg.C. However, temperature increases beyond that temperature come up against a number of technical problems including reducing NO_X emissions and the need to increase the strength of materials and, accordingly, the gradient of temperature rise tends to decrease. On the other hand, the period of high growth in which a specified increase in demand for power could be expected has come to an end for gas turbines, which have been increasing in capacity with a rise in temperature, and now it is a time in which new products must be created that are capable of coping with dramatically varying social and economic conditions. In addition, global environmental problems are becoming greater, and from the viewpoint of the utilization of limited fossil fuels and reducing the amount of CO₂ emissions, it is indispensable to develop more highly efficient power generation plants. This paper takes a brief look at future directions in the development of large-capacity gas turbines.