Ni-Catalyzed Asymmetric Reductive Arylation of α-Substituted Imides.

α-Aryl imides are common structural motifs in bioactive molecules and proteolysis-targeting chimeras designed for targeted protein degradation. An asymmetric Ni-catalyzed reductive cross-coupling of imide electrophiles and (hetero)aryl halides has been developed to synthesize enantioenriched α-arylglutarimides from simple starting materials. Judicious selection of electrophile pairs allows for coupling of both electron-rich and electron-deficient (hetero)aryl halides in good yields and enantioselectivities.