As an energetic polymer， glycidyl azide polymer （GAP） has the characteristics of high energy and good film-forming performance， and has a wide application prospect in the fields of propellants， explosives and so on. The latest research progress in aspects such as the optimization of GAP synthesis process， GAP modification technology， GAP-based energetic thermoplastic elastomers （ETPE）， and GAP-based ETPE with self-healing function were reviewed. Firstly， two synthetic methods of GAP were analyzed. It was proposed that the development directions were to develop a safe， green and efficient synthetic routes of GAP and the improvement and engineering application of the existing optimized processes. Secondly， in view of the poor low-temperature mechanical properties and irregular structure of GAP， the improvement effects of copolymerization modification， interpenetrating network technology， microwave radiation technology and fluoropolymers on the mechanical properties and thermal stability of GAP were mainly reviewed. It was proposed that developing low-cost modification processes and conducting in-depth research on the long-term storage and environmental adaptability of GAP-modified materials were the directions to promote the engineering development of modified GAP. Then， the influence of GAP-based ETPE structure regulation on mechanical properties， thermal stability and glass transition temperature was reviewed. Especially for GAP-based ETPE with self-healing function， scholars at home and abroad have achieved active repair of micro-defects by introducing dynamic covalent bonds and supramolecular interaction mechanism， significantly improving the mechanical properties and environmental adaptability of propellants and explosives.