Mesoionic carbene-catalyzed arylacylation of alkenes

Significant advancements in N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) organocatalysis via so-called Breslow intermediates (BIs) have been achieved in the past few decades. However, the use of BIs via single electron transfer (SET) pathways is still in its infancy and the scope is limited by the moderate reduction potential of BIs derived from classical NHCs. We reported a radical-relay arylacylation of alkenes via the reduction of iodobenzene by BIs derived from mesoionic carbenes (BIMICs).