Light alkane, such as ethane and propane, are ubiquitous in natural gas and the by-products of the various waste-, biomass-, and power-to-X processes. However, the transformations of light alkane, due to the inert C-H bonds, remain a formidable challenge. Our approach involves designing catalytic materials and reaction pathways for more efficient catalytic transformations. For example, by tuning the catalytically active sites within the micropores of the HZSM-5 zeolite, efficient catalysts for light alkane dehydroaromatization have been developed, achieving significantly high activity and stability with an ultralow loading of noble metal. Through tuning the catalytic pathways, two new catalytic processes, namely, ammonia-assisted dehydrogenation (for direct acetonitrile production) and ammonia-assisted reforming (for H2 production), have been developed. Our work paved the way for efficient light alkane upgrading, which could have far-reaching implications not only for natural gas conversion but also for sustainable chemicals production from various feedstocks, such as alkanes from waste-, biomass-, and power-to-X processes.