To make predictions about the future state is always dangerous because its birth has not yet taken place. The fifth generation of computers cannot yet be said to have arrived. The main characteristics expected of the fifth generation are availability at affordable cost of very great computing power through VLSI, software capability to go much further in emulating human intelligence using new styles of information representation and of programming (for which the developments in VLSI a.e essential prerequisite); and a quantum leap in the accessibility of computer systems to ordinary people though the engineering of much better interfaces (specially involving speech handling). Although the cost of VLSI developing is recognized to be very high; it is realized that main problem will be in the field of software and specially for much mare effective programming support environments.