The ARGO-YBJ experiment has been in stable data taking for 5 years at the YangBaJing Cosmic Ray Observatory (Tibet, P.R. China, 4300 m a.s.l., 606 g/cm$^2$). With a duty-cycle greater than 86% the detector collected about 5$times $10$^{11}$ events in
a wide energy range, from few hundreds GeV up to about 10 PeV. A number of open problems in cosmic ray physics has been faced exploiting different analyses. In this paper we summarize the latest results in cosmic ray physics and in gamma-ray astronomy.
Despite large progresses in building new detectors and in the analysis techniques, the key questions concerning the origin, acceleration and propagation of Galactic Cosmic Rays are still open. A number of new EAS arrays is in progress. The most ambit
ious and sensitive project between them is LHAASO, a new generation multi-component experiment to be installed at very high altitude in China (Daocheng, Sichuan province, 4400 m a.s.l.). The experiment will face the open problems through a combined study of photon- and charged particle-induced extensive air showers in the wide energy range 10$^{11}$ - 10$^{18}$ eV. In this paper the status of the experiment will be summarized, the science program presented and the outlook discussed in comparison with leading new projects.
