The changes in the capitalist system in the last 50 years generated transformations in the structure, form and function of cities. Between 1965 and 1980, some authors produced a radical conceptual shift in urban theory. Then, in the 1990s and towards the mid-2000s, we identified two other moments in the production of critical approaches to the city, in response to the deepening of neoliberal globalization and the impact that the new logics of capitalist accumulation (financial and digital) generated in large cities. In this framework, we will review the contributions of some central authors in this conceptual evolution, particularly the contributions of Lefebvre, Castells, Harvey, Sassen and Soja as well as some Latin American contributions in relation to the city as a project and the urban in general, considering their respective contexts of theoretical production. The objective of the article is to identify the main ideas and references that marked this conceptual shift in critical urban theory, as well as the impact on the conceptual and operational tools for the formulation of urban policies, in a context of increasing uncertainty and complexity.