This paper reviewed several recent progresses of advanced aluminum matrix composites in the nano reinforcement, nanocrystallization of matrix, architecture design and advanced manufacturing technologies. High-performance nano reinforcements could provide high enhancement efficiency, while the nanocrystallization of the matrices could introduce a serial of nan size effects; the architecture designs (e.g. bimodal or multimodal distributions, laminated or network architectures) provided new routes for property optimization of the aluminum matrix composites; and the advanced manufacturing technologies (e.g. advanced powder metallurgy, severe plastic deformation and additive manufacturing) provided techniques for the preparation and processing of advanced aluminum matrix composites. It can be expected that, the application of nano reinforcements with better properties, structural effects at different scales and new manufacturing technologies would be the hotspot in the future research.