Selective and efficient cleavage of covalent bonds to enable the formation of new bonds is a core feature of organic synthesis and of key importance for late-stage (de)functionalizations to provide compounds with new properties. Alcohols represent a highly prevalent and versatile class of organic compounds, well represented among natural compounds as well as synthetic products with a wide range of structural complexity. As such, the abundant compound class is an important source of synthetic building blocks for a wide range of transformations. However, selective cleavage of the polarized C-OH σ-bond through either heterolytic or homolytic pathways is challenging. The low reactivity is reflected in the considerably higher bond dissociation energy (BDE) values compared to those of analogous polarized σ-bonds such as C(sp 3 )-Br bonds (Figure , top left). Traditional synthetic strategies to overcome the unfavored C-O bond cleavage relies on stoichiometric functionalization of the hydroxyl group into a better leaving group. Such derivatizations facilitate reductions, nucleophilic substitutions, transition metal-catalyzed cross-coupling reactions, etc., in both a two-electron polar setting and a radical manifold (Figure , top right). For selective deletion of hydroxyl groups to furnish alkane products, the radical Barton-McCombie deoxygenation is still widely used, relying on derivatization of the alcohols to xanthate esters and stoichiometric use of chemical reductants such as tributyltin hydride or silanes. In recent years, the pre-functionalization of alcohols into carboxylic esters, such as oxalate, toluate and benzoate, has gained attention as enabling strategy for deoxygenative transformations in a radical setting. Similarly, in situ formation of activated alcohol derivatives using e.g. N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHC's) and phosphines is an efficient strategy in a single electron manifold. While stoichiometric derivatization of the hydroxyl group has resulted in selective protocols for various transformations, the strategy is not ideal when considering atom and step economy. To tackle this, catalytic strategies for deoxygenative transformations of non-derivatized alcohols is an area of considerable synthetic interest that encompasses, e.g., dehydrogenative transition metal catalysis, catalytic Mitsunobu protocols, carbocationic routes, Tsuji-Trost type activation and radical transition metal catalysis (Figure , middle). While often effective, these catalytic routes are associated with synthetic limitations as a result of their underlying mechanisms; dehydrogenative transformations and catalytic SN2-type procedures are sensitive to steric hindrance, while ionic and radical routes require substrates that can stabilize the reactive intermediates. In the latter case, stoichiometric amounts of a terminal reductant are also required, commonly a metal powder such as Zn or Mn. For these reasons, the development of new general methods for C-OH bond cleavage without stoichiometric derivatization in or ex situ continues to be of great interest from a synthetic perspective. The topic has been highlighted as a key research area by the ACS Green Chemistry Institute Pharmaceutical Roundtable, and has great potential for future applications in, e.g., biomass valorization. Electrochemistry has become an increasingly popular synthetic approach to break and forge bonds in organic molecules in a radical setting, due to its inherent potential for new reactivity and selectivity as well as for resource-efficient synthesis. In this context, electroreduction has proven to be a successful strategy for selective cleavage of polarized C-X σ-bonds in alkyl halides to furnish carboncentered radical intermediates for a wide variety of applications, including hydrodehalogenation of complex organic molecules and cross-electrophile couplings. In comparison, direct reduction of C-OH bonds requires significantly more negative potentials and only a handful of protocols have been reported in which the parent alcohol is not stoichiometrically derivatized in or ex situ. To date, these protocols are limited to hydrodeoxygenation that furnishes alkane products. Given and Peover disclosed a protocol for electroreduction of xanthydrol to xanthene with phenol as a hydrogen source in 1959, while the groups of Lund and Horányi demonstrated that electrochemical hydrodeoxygenation was viable for other -activated alcohols under similar conditions in the following decades. Electrochemical removal of allylic alcohols in taxoid structures was demonstrated by Commerçon and co-workers in 1994, and Guo and co-workers recently disclosed a protocol for transformation of benzylic alcohols into the corresponding alkanes in the presence of AlCl3 and a sacrificial aluminum anode. In addition, electroreduction of allyl alcohol to propene and propane has been reported under acidic conditions. It can be noted that, while deoxygenative bond formation to other atoms than hydrogen has been demonstrated under electrosynthetic conditions with alcohols as starting materials, these transformations rely on stoichiometric in situ derivatization of the hydroxyl group to e.g. esters, carbonates, phosphonium alkoxides and borate esters. In electrosynthesis, the anodic and cathodic half-cell reactions must be designed to prevent starting materials, desired products or intermediate structures from undergoing unwanted side-reactions at the counter electrode. Such control over the redox reactions can be accomplished using divided cells or by judicious choice of a counter reaction that is more favored than side-reaction formation, thereby enabling a user-friendly undivided cell setup. Electrooxidative transformations are commonly balanced by cathodic proton reduction for the formation of H2, while electroreductive transformations have been balanced by oxidation of a variety of reductants including sacrificial metal anodes (e.g. Mg, Al or Zn). While this strategy is user-friendly for batch electrolysis on laboratory scale, it can be problematic for large scale processes and flow electrolysis due to the erosion of the anode that continuously changes the inter-electrode distance, results in the formation of inorganic salts that can cause cell blockages and the need for replacement within a relatively short timeframe. As alternative, (super)stoichiometric use of additives, such as amines, phosphines, thioethers, and thioureas, has been demonstrated. Furthermore, solvent oxidation has been used as the anodic counter reaction in aqueous and alcoholic systems, similar to their use in electrolyzer and fuel cell applications. In context of the latter, borohydride reagents have been highlighted as an interesting reductant due to their low oxidation potentials. Surprisingly, the use of such reagents is severely underdeveloped in an electrosynthetic setting. In two seminal papers, Huang and co-workers utilized sodium borohydride (NaBH4) and tetrabutylammonium borohydride (Bu4NBH4) as additives to promote reductive cleavage of aryl ethers and aryl fluorides. While efficient, a drawback of these electroreductive transformations was the use of platinum electrodes as well as the lack of mechanistic detail. Inspired by Huang's work and leveraging the successful use of borohydride reagents in fuel cell applications, we demonstrate herein the use of borohydride reagents as fuel for the anodic counter reaction to promote electroreductive hydrodeoxygenation of benzylic and propargylic alcohols using inert carbon electrodes. In addition, we present the first examples of deoxygenative electroreductive C-C bond formation in the synthesis of arylacetic acids from non-derivatized alcohols and CO2, along with mechanistic details of the processes.