The asymmetric synthesis of the trifluoromethyl analogue of (4S)-4,5-dihydroxy-2,3-pentanedione [(4S)-DPD], the metabolic precursor of the bacterial quorum sensing (QS) autoinducer AI-2, is described. The trifluoromethyl group was introduced by treating (trifluoromethyl)trimethylsilane with an α-methylene ester resulting from a Baylis–Hillman reaction between (tert-butyldimethylsilyloxy)acetaldehyde