The short contact time oxidation processes for producing synthesis gas and for producing olefins result from the coupling of heterogeneous catalysis characteristics and flameless combustion in porous media. The technological potential of these methods appears huge, and the fundamental concepts development has been linked to the industrial realization. A plant devoted to the production of H-2 is now under construction. Instead, the development of a technology for producing the olefins is still struggling with reliability issues. This work touches on some of the main aspects of the pathway that has turned the early discoveries into the current technological solutions.