Palladium-Catalyzed Enantioselective C–H Activation Reaction of Undirected Arenes with Cyclopentenes

Although directed C–H activation has revolutionized organic synthesis, the asymmetric functionalization of arenes in the absence of directing groups remains a formidable challenge. Here we show that a palladium-catalyzed C–H activation reaction enables the enantioselective coupling of undirected arenes and heteroarenes with cyclopentene derivatives. Facilitated by a class of readily accessible chiral pyridone-oxazoline ligands, this protocol promotes efficient C(sp 2 )–H activation to generate the products featuring two stereocenters with excellent stereocontrol (up to 96% ee and 40:1 dr).