Light olefins are important organic building blocks in the chemicals industry. The main low-carbon olefin production methods, such as catalytic cracking and steam cracking, have considerable room for improvement in their utilization of hydrocarbons. This review provides a thorough overview of recent studies on catalytic cracking, steam cracking, and the conversion of crude oil processes. To maximize the production of light olefins and reduce carbon emissions, the perceived benefits of various technologies are examined. Taking olefin generation and conversion as a link to expand upstream and downstream processes, a targeted catalytic cracking to olefins (TCO) process is proposed to meet current demands for the transformation of oil refining into chemical production. The main innovations of this process include a multiple feedstock supply, the development of medium-sized catalysts, and a diameter-transformed fluidized-bed reactor with different feeding schemes. In combination with other chemical processes, TCO is expected to play a critical role in enabling petroleum refining and chemical processes to achieve low carbon dioxide emissions.