We report here a facile, template-free and one-step solvothermal approach for the synthesis of high-temperature stable gold/titania nanocomposite (NCs), providing a new, simple, quick and inexpensive wet-chemical route. Our approach is based on the assembly of gold salt and titanium butoxide in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). Also, we present here, for the first time, a cathodically activated Au/TiO2 catalyst with Pt/C activity for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) in 0.5 M H2SO4 in the dark. The as-prepared (unactivated) Au/TiO2 NCs exhibits considerable electrocatalytic activity for H-2 generation in the dark, with a low onset potential (E-HER) of -64mV vs. RHE, a Tafel slope (-b(c)) of 60 mV dec(-1) and an exchange current density (j(o)) of 0.12 mA cm(-2). Long-term stability and durability tests in 0.5 M H2SO4, employing cyclic voltammetry technique (10,000 of repetitive cycling) and 72 h of chronoamperometry measurements at a high cathodic potential (cathodic activation), reveal that the electrocatalyst activates during such aging processes yielding an activated Au/TiO2 catalyst with Pt/C-like activity for H-2 generation (E-HER-3 mV, -b(c): 35 mV dec(-1), and j(o): 0.95 mA cm(-2)). The outstanding HER activity of the activated catalyst is discussed. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.