Abstract: Understanding and applying the "right of technology route decision" is an essential practical issue in China's science and technology system reform and a critical academic proposition in studying science and technology law. We examined the timeline of China's science and technology policies and regulations from 1956 to 2022. The evolution of the scope of the technology route decision right can be initially divided into the exploration stage (1956-1978), the development stage (1978-2012), and the deepening stage (2012-present). This retrospective examination helps to explore further the legal meaning, attributes, positioning, operation mechanism, and institutional design of the right of technology route decision from the science and technology law perspective.