It is essential that the development of efficient and excellent stability electrocatalysts for water oxidation, which could covert effectively renewable electricity to chemical energy. Herein, it is fabricated firstly in situ that a novel Au-B-i anode oxygen-evolving catalyst with an outstanding catalytic performance for water splitting by electrolytic deposition from dilute AuCl4- solutions in potassium tetraborate electrolyte at pH 11. The H-2 generated for water splitting rate of the Au-B-i is 116.38 mu mol cm(-2) h(-1) and the Faradaic efficiency reaches 90.43% in 0.1 M tripotassium phosphate solution. Moreover, the main active component of the Au-B-i is gold oxide (Au2O3). What is more, this work expands the research on Au-based oxygen-evolving catalysts and provides increased insight into water splitting. (C) 2019 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.