Yesterday, Audemars Piguet announced 22 new watches at the AP Social Club in Le Brassus. When a manufacture releases this many watches in a single presentation, the question isn't celebration, it's evaluation. Which of these actually matter? We published yesterday's releases because they're newsworthy, not because most are genuinely special beyond good looks—with one spectacular exception: the 150 Heritage Pocket Watch.

Let me be frank about what troubles me most and call a spade a spade like I always do. The Neo Frame Jumping Hour is elegantly executed. An 18K gold rectangular case inspired by a 1929 jumping-hour watch from their archives at the Musée Atelier Audemars Piguet, featuring AP's first automatic in-house jumping-hour movement. The black PVD-treated sapphire crystal dial with dual gold-framed apertures demonstrates genuine attention to detail. Priced at USD 71,200, it seems a little bit too steep for a watch like that.

For once, at least, this is something new and not just another dial color variation on a Royal Oak, another metal or material for the Royal Oak Offshore, or a forced design into a Code 11.59. With this release, some thought was put into it, but it still falls short in my book.

Here's the problem: Cartier just brought back the Privé Tank à Guichets in 2025 after originally releasing it in 1928. Jaeger-LeCoultre has been exploring similar territory with the Reverso since 1931, and I just can’t help but find so many similarities with those watches. Even the gadroons on the caseband remind me of the Reverso. This feels like Audemars Piguet is arriving fashionably late to a conversation that others have been dominating for years. Where's the pioneering spirit that gave us the Royal Oak Concept Alacrite in 2002? That was genuinely revolutionary.

The three new Royal Oak Offshore Diver references follow an even more predictable formula. Turquoise and pink versions embrace the Miami-coded bright colors that have dominated sports watches lately. The third opts for deep teal with pink gold accents. More of the same as was used before. All are very competent ISO-Standard qualified dive watches with 42 mm cases, Méga Tapisserie dials, and an updated 4308 movement, but that’s all there is. They'll sell immediately, but they represent precisely zero innovation beyond color selection. And all you avid readers and loyal followers of WCL know how much I’ve loved the Royal Oak Offshore Diver since its 2010 release.

To me, this is just Audemars Piguet in maintenance mode with product line extensions designed to hit different market segments and keep attracting more of the ‘nouveau riche’ clientele into the brand. Remember when the 1993 Royal Oak Offshore was genuinely controversial? When it pushed boundaries and alienated traditionalists precisely because it dared to reimagine Gérald Genta's icon? These new Divers don't push anything except higher production numbers. Below is the original Royal Oak Offshore from 1993 ref. 25721ST, ‘The Beast’.

When AP Remembers What It Should Be

The 150 Heritage pocket watch stands apart from yesterday's deluge. Incorporating 60 functions that can be counted as complications under FH standards—28 autonomous complications plus 32 intuitive mechanized ergonomic functions—into a case measuring 50 mm in diameter and 23.4 mm thick while maintaining proportions appropriate for functional pocket watch use, this demonstrates what Audemars Piguet can achieve when they prioritize horological substance over market trends.

The new calibre 1150 introduces the Universal Calendar for the first time, alongside hand-engraved platinum, luminous Grand Feu enameling, and a hand-made chain—showcasing métiers d'art that define haute horlogerie and are mastered only by a few.

Limited to two one-of-a-kind platinum editions, this represents a genuine celebration of AP's heritage. This is the Audemars Piguet I fell in love with in 1998. Not the brand chasing turquoise Offshore Divers, but the manufacture capable of extraordinary technical achievement. The one that can still compete with the Vacheron Constantins of the world. This pocket watch connects directly to L'Universelle from 1899, demonstrating ambition worthy of the brand's history.

The new in-house Calibre 6401 for the Royal Oak Chronograph 38 mm also deserves some recognition. After nearly 30 years of relying on Frédéric Piguet's calibre 1185—labeled by AP as Calibre 2385 (shown in the photo below)—, this integrated column-wheel chronograph represents 5 years of development. But here's my uncomfortable question: why did this take until 2026? Vacheron Constantin and Patek Philippe developed in-house integrated chronographs decades ago.

Perpetual Calendar Openworking: Beautiful Redundancy

The openworked perpetual calendars—Royal Oak and Code 11.59—with new Calibre 7139 exemplify yesterday's approach perfectly. Everyone loved last year's calibre 7138 in the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar ref. 26674 with its revolutionary all-crown-adjustment system that consolidated perpetual calendar corrections into intuitive crown operation. It was so genuinely innovative, earning the GPHG Iconic Watch Prize.

Now Audemars Piguet presents calibre 7139: a skeletonized version of that same movement. It's exquisitely finished—EDM machining, satin brushing, chamfering, and hand finishing all impeccable. Available in both the Royal Oak and the Code 11.59, the openworked architecture beautifully showcases the movement’s construction. However, this isn't groundbreaking; it’s redundant. It's a variation on last year's achievement.

Just months ago, they released the 150th Anniversary Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar in titanium with BMG, which I noted should have featured the newly released calibre 7138 instead of the older 5135, and should have been platinum or tantalum rather than titanium. Now we get the openworked version, which feels more like product line management than true innovation.

The Identity Crisis Continues

Yesterday's presentation perfectly encapsulates Audemars Piguet's current paradox. The 150 Heritage pocket watch demonstrates extraordinary capability. Bright pink Offshore Divers reveal a brand chasing cultural relevance through more non-stop color variations. The Neo Frame shows elegant design, but years after icons like the Reverso or Cartier established the template. The openworked perpetual calendars showcase beautiful finishing, but are variations on last year's innovation. Again, nothing new here. This approach recalls the product proliferation that defines brands like Hublot—maximum visibility, maximum production, minimum focus.

Audemars Piguet has become a brand trying to continue serving multiple masters simultaneously: traditional collectors seeking technical excellence, some of the old AP collector base still hanging around, ‘nouveau riche’ clients wanting Instagram-worthy pieces, younger demographics pursuing pop culture relevance, dealers disguised as collectors ready to flip the watches for a profit, and serious enthusiasts demanding horological substance. But serving everyone well requires extraordinary focus, and releasing 22 watches in one day suggests the opposite.

When I purchased my first Royal Oak Jumbo 5402ST in 1998, virtually no one recognized what I wore. That anonymity was part of the appeal—genuine quiet luxury almost three decades ago. Today's AP cultivates the opposite: maximum visibility, maximum production. From 51,000 watches to potentially 70,000 annually, everything points toward scale over exclusivity.

As Audemars Piguet prepares to return to Watches & Wonders Geneva next April after six years of independence, the fundamental question remains: What does this brand want to be? A manufacture capable of pieces like the 150 Heritage pocket watch? Or a volume producer offering turquoise Offshore Divers to capture market segments?

Yesterday's 22 watches suggest a brand still searching for identity rather than confidently maintaining one. The Heritage pocket watch shows promise returning toward technical excellence. But the relentless new color schematic releases suggest otherwise. The Audemars Piguet I fell in love with took risks. Yesterday's presentation played it safe 21 times over.

Bring back the AP I fell in love with in 1998.

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