The Au(I)-catalyzed regioselective hydration of γ-acetoxy-α,β-acetylinic ester by the assistance of a neighboring carbonyl group has been developed. Varieties of simple primary, secondary, and tertiary γ-acetoxy-α,β-acetylinic esters, even those bearing sensitive functional group in the remote reaction sites, are selectively hydrated to the corresponding β-keto esters. The reaction tolerates a wide variety of other carboxylates, such as benzoates, propionates, acrylates, and pivalates, including chiral carboxylates with retention of the configuration. The broad substrate scope, including the derivatization of complex natural products and neutral and open air conditions, makes this atom economical approach very practical. (18)O labeling experiments disclose that the oxygen transposition occurs from the carboxylate group to the triple bond, not from water.

A mild and highly regioselective gold‐catalyzed hydration of γ‐acetoxy aryl alkynes leading to anti‐Markovnikov products by the assistance of a neighboring carbonyl group is presented. The reaction procedure operates under room temperature conditions with broad functional group tolerance in presence of more than stoichiometric amount of water to access two different types of acyloins in good to excellent yields. Acetate protected acyloins were produced from primary and secondary substrates, while tertiary ones react differently to give free‐acyloins under identical conditions. The mechanistic pathways for such divergent functionalization were deduced from isotopic mechanistic results.

Herein, we report a simple, efficient, highly regioselective, and broad-scope hydration method that is facilitated by an unusual interception of an electrophilic intermediate by water generated via acetate group participation during [3,3]-acyloxy rearrangement. Various carboxylate-directing groups including acetate, acrylates, pivalates, benzoate or its derivatives, and those derived from bioactive natural products were successfully implemented to direct the regioselective hydration for various functionalized δ-acyloxy-β-ketoester synthesis. The reaction pathway was further confirmed by 18 O labeling experiments, and to the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of hydration through an electrophilic intermediate generated during [3,3]-acyloxy rearrangement. Synthetic application includes the synthesis of a modifiable C5-carbon chain, five-, six-, and seven-membered heterocycles, and natural product diversification.