A Redox‐neutral Nickel‐catalysed Sulfonylation of (Hetero)aryl Boronic Acids with 2‐Chlorothiazoles

A redox‐neutral nickel‐catalysed sulfonylation for arylsulfone synthesis was developed. (Hetero)aryl boronic acids reacted with potassium metabisulfite (K2S2O5) and readily available 2‐chlorothiazoles in the presence of air‐stable Ni(OTf)2 and 4,4‐di‐tert‐butyl bipyridine (dtbpy) as a commercially available ligand to produce the corresponding 2‐sulfonylthiazoles in moderate to excellent yields. This practical protocol tolerates a wide range of substrates including boronic acids and 2‐chloro(benzo)thiazoles without additional bases, allowing the direct synthesis of functional arylsulfones. An efficient nickel‐catalysed sulfonylation of readily available boronic acids, K2S2O5 and 2‐chlorobenzothiazoles has been successfully developed for the synthesis of structurally diverse (hetero)aryl sulfones without additional bases.