Access to [beta]-Lactams by Enantioselective Palladium(0)-Catalyzed C(sp3)H Alkylation

[beta]-Lactams are very important structural motifs because of their broad biological activities as well as their propensity to engage in ring-opening reactions. Transition-metal-catalyzed CH functionalizations have emerged as strategy enabling yet uncommon highly efficient disconnections. In contrast to the significant progress of Pd0-catalyzed CH functionalization for aryl-aryl couplings, related reactions involving the formation of saturated C(sp3)C(sp3) bonds are elusive. Reported here is an asymmetric CH functionalization approach to [beta]-lactams using readily accessible chloroacetamide substrates. Important aspects of this transformation are challenging C(sp3)C(sp3) and strain-building reductive eliminations to for the four-membered ring. In general, the [beta]-lactams are formed in excellent yields and enantioselectivities using a bulky taddol phosphoramidite ligand in combination with adamantyl carboxylic acid as cocatalyst.