Efficient and Divergent Synthesis of Medium‐Sized Lactams through Zinc‐Catalyzed Oxidative Cyclization of Indoly Ynamides†

An efficient zinc‐catalyzed oxidative cyclization of readily available indoly ynamides has been developed, enabling rapid and practical access to a diverse array of valuable medium‐sized lactams in mostly good to excellent yields with wide substrate scope. In addition, such an asymmetric synthesis has also been explored by employing the chiral substrate.