Nature Chemistry, Published online: 21 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41557-026-02216-4 An elusive aura-nitrene has been captured in crystallo by the photochemical extrusion of N2 from a gold(III) azide complex. Computational investigations confirm a triplet ground state and its reactivity with O2, CO, aldehydes and alkynes establish gold as a viable platform for nitrene atom-transfer chemistry.