On the basis of the far higher solubility of oxygen gas inside the hydrocarbon core of nanomicelles, metal and peroxide free aerobic oxidation of aryl alkynes has been achieved in water at room temperature. Many examples are offered that illustrate broad functional group tolerance. The overall process is environmentally friendly, documented by the associated low E Factors.Keywords aerobic oxidation; TPGS-750-M; ATRA; micellar catalysis; E Factors; hydrophobic effect Reactions in alternative media represent one approach to decreasing the huge amounts of organic waste generated by use of organic solvents in organic chemistry. [1] While such options as ionic liquids, supercritical CO 2 , and fluorinated media, among others, have made important inroads in this regard, the most likely and perhaps logical choice, following Nature's lead, is water. [2] Although we have investigated many processes enabled by designer surfactants where water serves as the gross reaction medium, [3] synthetic advantage has yet to be taken of the well established far greater solubility of gases in organic media than in water. [4] Since our reported cross-couplings and related reactions take place within the lipophilic cores of tailor-made micellar arrays, gases, as well as reactants and catalysts, should likewise co-exist in high concentrations and be available to participate in a given transformation. Surprisingly, there appears to be limited methodology [5] of synthetic utility focused on the use of gases in micellar catalysis. In this report we describe one such process involving dissolved oxygen serving as the stoichiometric oxidant, along with readily available aryl alkynes and sulfinic acids that leads to valuable β-ketosulfones under very mild, metal-free, and green conditions.