Today hydrogen peroxide is produced by an indirect process in which an alkyl anthraquinone is sequentially hydrogenated and oxidized. In this way hydrogen and oxygen are kept separate during the manufacturing process. A process where molecular oxygen is directly hydrogenated could be preferred if control of the sequential hydrogenation can be achieved, particularly if high rates can be attained under intrinsically safe, non-explosive conditions. Herein we describe recent progress in the direct synthesis of hydrogen peroxide using supported palladium and gold-palladium alloy catalysts and consider some of the problems that have to be overcome.