From 28 September 2026–2 October 2026, the “20th Brazilian Meeting on Organic Synthesis (BMOS)” took place in Águas de Lindóia, in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. The international conference addressed current developments in organic synthesis. A particular focus this year was on the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning in chemical research.
Supported by the Brazilian Chemical Society and organised jointly with the Royal Society of Chemistry (UK), the conference brought together numerous scientists from Brazil and abroad. Special guests included, amongst others, Prof. Dr. Ben Feringa from the University of Groningen, who delivered the opening lecture and was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2016, as well as Prof. Dr. Marc Lautens from the University of Toronto, with whom our former colleague Moritz Klischan has already completed a research placement.
Dominic Badermann also took part with a poster presentation. Under the title “Synthesis and regioselective ring openeing of C1-symmetric cyclic diaryl iodonium ions.”, he presented his work on Tuesday during the first poster session and took the opportunity to engage in professional discussions with the other participants.
Among his personal highlights were the lectures by Prof. Dr. Daniele Leonori (RWTH Aachen) on modern photochemistry in synthesis and the selective isomerisation of complex heterocycles, as well as the lecture by Dr. Jeffrey Kuethe (Merck), who provided insights into the chemoenzymatic synthesis of complex cyclic polypeptides on an industrial and commercially viable scale.
Special thanks go to the group led by Prof. Dr. Kleber Thiago de Oliveira for their warm welcome, the many interesting discussions, and the volleyball match they played together – in which Dominic may not have emerged victorious, but which certainly left him with fond memories.
We are delighted that Dominic had the opportunity to present his work internationally and to bring back many new impressions and ideas from Brazil!