Ru‐Catalyzed CH Activations with Oxidizing Directing Groups

Abstract Transition metal‐catalyzed CH bond activation has emerged as a powerful and ideal method for organic synthesis in recent decades. To avoid the use of over‐stoichiometric oxidant, the concept of oxidizing directing group was introduced for different catalytic systems. Recently, such strategy has been widely employed in the ruthenium‐catalyzed reactions, enabling novel CH functionalization under relatively mild conditions. In this article, progress in the recent development of the Ru‐catalyzed CH activations with oxidizing directing groups was summarized according to different types of internal oxidants. Major findings in the research field, mechanistic information from experimental or theoretical studies, and possible role of the internal oxidant were introduced according to literature reports.