Deep-sea exploration and residence equipment is an important basis for the development of marine science. In recent years, China's independent research and development of related equipment has made good progress; however, some technical problems still exist in the process of localization. It is urgent to overcome these problems and promote China's capabilities for constructing a "transparent ocean". This study analyzes the development demand for deep-sea exploration and residence equipment and summarizes the development status and problems of the equipment by focusing on six key areas: general equipment for deep-sea perception and detection; general platforms for deep-sea carrier detection; deep-sea multi-functional operation platforms; deep-sea communication, navigation, and positioning equipment; general tools for deep-sea operation; and intelligent control systems for deep-sea manned and unmanned equipment. Moreover, the study proposes the key development direction of the deep-sea exploration and residence equipment in China, covering nine key technologies: exploration equipment energy supply, design and optimization of equipment systems, power systems with a high power density, in-situ experimental research and development, livability and emergency rescue of manned equipment, underwater dynamic networked positioning, underwater acoustic–optical multi-mode hybrid communication networks, human–machine hybrid decision-making and collaborative control, and evaluation and optimization of human–computer interaction effectiveness. On this basis, it is necessary to accelerate the construction of key marine areas while adhering to scientific development, promote infrastructure co-construction and information sharing through overall planning and intensive development, and encourage the innovation-driven and sustainable development of new technologies and equipment, thus to promote the high-quality development of the deep-sea exploration and residence equipment in China.