Herein, we report the photoinduced, catalyst‐free alkylpyridylation of styrenes to access privileged 1,1‐diarylalkane scaffolds. Unactivated alkyl iodides and substituted 4‐cyanopyridines serve as the alkyl and pyridyl precursors, respectively. Preliminary mechanistic and computational studies suggest that the amine plays a crucial role in generating the corresponding alkyl radical and aryl radical anion, possibly via halogen bonding and EDA‐initiated SET mechanisms, respectively. The method offers several advantages, including mild reaction conditions, wide substrate compatibility, and suitability for late‐stage modification of pharmaceutical compounds.
Tripathy et al. (2026) studied this question.