The tetracyclic meroterpenoid natural product (＋)-liphagal is one of a number of natural inhibitors of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), which plays a central role in regulation of cell proliferation, cell survival, adhesion, membrane trafficking, glucose transport and neurite growth. Liphagal also shows inhibitory activity against PI3Kα with an IC 50 of 100 nmol•L -1 making it as an agent for the treatment of inflammatory and autoimmune disorders as well as cancer and cardiovascular diseases. From a structural point of view, liphagal has an unprecedented [6-7-5-6] tetracyclic skeleton, and has attracted significant attention from the synthetic chemists. Starting from cheap and commercially available 2,4,5-trimethoxylbenzaldehyde and α-ionone, an advanced intermediate 10 for the synthesis of 8-epi-liphagal was achieved in the longest linear 7 steps and 8.72% yield. The key reactions include: Wittig reaction, Cu-catalyzed cyclization, chemoselective hydrogenation and Friedel-Crafts reaction.