Photochemical Decatungstate‐Catalyzed Hydroacylation of Maleimides

Succinimides constitute a useful and coveted structural scaffold in organic synthesis, due to their wide range of applications. Herein, we present an efficient approach for the synthesis of substituted succinimides by means of photocatalysis. Namely, tetra n‐butylammonium decatungstate, a well‐known photocatalyst, was employed under light irradiation, in order to synthesize a variety of succinimide ketones via a direct hydroacylation reaction of N ‐substituted maleimides. A diverse range of aldehydes and N ‐substituted maleimides show great compatibility with this protocol, providing functionalized succinimides in satisfactory yields. The protocol is applicable to flow conditions, as well as in a gram scale reaction.