Dubai Watch Week returned this November with its most dynamic and successful edition yet, reaffirming its status as one of the world’s leading horology events and a cultural moment in its own right. This year’s programme drew an impressive mix of collectors, industry leaders, independent watchmakers, and enthusiasts from across the globe, all gathering in Dubai to celebrate craftsmanship, creativity, and the evolving future of watchmaking.
Across five days, the event delivered a rich blend of launches, masterclasses, panels, and immersive brand experiences, transforming the DIFC into a vibrant hub of ideas and innovation. From rare timepieces unveiled exclusively for the region to thought-provoking conversations about design, legacy, and next-generation manufacturing, the week balanced technical depth with contemporary cultural relevance.
The atmosphere was electric yet intimate, true to Dubai Watch Week’s reputation for fostering genuine dialogue between brands and their communities. With record attendance, standout novelties, and a renewed sense of momentum, this year marked a defining chapter for the event and for the region’s growing influence in the global watch landscape. Turn the page to discover some of the novelties and highlights from this year’s event.
Audemars Piguet
Audemars Piguet marked its 150th anniversary with a standout presence at Dubai Watch Week, presenting its large-scale House of Wonders exhibition. Held across Dubai Mall’s Burj Park, the immersive showcase offered visitors a rare journey into the Maison’s heritage, craftsmanship and creative evolution. Designed as a bridge between Dubai and Le Brassus, the exhibition unfolded through themed chambers that highlighted historic workshops, archival timepieces, mechanical innovations, and the landscapes of the Vallée de Joux. It also reflected the brand’s long-standing relationship with the Seddiqi family, founders of Dubai Watch Week. Throughout the event, Audemars Piguet hosted a dynamic programme, including the reveal of its ongoing collaboration with the Dubai Future Foundation, reinforcing its commitment to sharing watchmaking culture with a wider audience.
Bvlgari
Bvlgari returned to Dubai Watch Week, unveiling a limited-edition collaboration that seamlessly unites Italian design with Emirati artistry: the Mattar Bin Lahej x Octo Finissimo. The seventh edition of the fair set the stage for this remarkable debut. Since its introduction, the Octo Finissimo has offered a refined canvas for creative expression, merging Roman architectural codes with Swiss precision. This year, Bvlgari partnered with renowned Emirati artist Mattar Bin Lahej, whose signature calligraphy transforms the ultra-thin titanium case, bracelet, and dial. Inspired by the words of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the piece becomes a tribute to imagination, innovation, and the future. An exceptional fusion of cultural legacy and modern mastery.
Van Cleef & Arpels
Van Cleef & Arpels returned to Dubai Watch Week with a poetic celebration of horological artistry, unveiling the Poetry of Time exhibition and the remarkable Brassée de Lavande automaton. The Maison invited visitors into an imaginative universe shaped by ballerinas, fairies, cosmic scenes and nature-inspired creations, each one narrating time through emotion and craftsmanship. At the heart of the presentation, artisans demonstrated their savoir-faire at dedicated workbenches, while archival pieces offered insight into the brand’s creative heritage.
The debut of the Brassée de Lavande automaton captivated audiences: a lacquered rose-gold dome that blossoms open to reveal a fluttering butterfly and soft melody. Blending technical mastery with dreamlike storytelling, the piece embodied Van Cleef & Arpels’ enduring vision of time as an art form.
Breitling
Breitling marked a pivotal moment with CEO Georges Kern unveiling the House of Brands, a new strategic vision uniting three historic watch maisons under one umbrella. Alongside Breitling, the revived Universal Genève and Gallet were previewed ahead of their global relaunch in 2026, signalling a renewed commitment to preserving significant horological legacies. Presented at one of the world’s most influential industry platforms, the announcement underscored the importance of the Middle East, Southeast Asia and India in shaping the future of contemporary watchmaking. A dedicated two-storey pavilion offered guests a first look at the House of Brands, reflecting a portfolio designed to span accessible craftsmanship to ultra-luxury, while honouring each maison’s heritage, identity and cultural impact.
Hublot
Hublot marked its return to the event with a celebration of two milestones: 20 years of the Big Bang and the 75th anniversary of Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons. The brand unveiled two exclusive timepieces created in partnership with Seddiqi: the Big Bang All Black Ahmed Seddiqi 75th Anniversary, limited to 10 pieces, and the Big Bang Titanium Grey Ahmed Seddiqi 75th Anniversary, limited to 25. Both models featured Arabic numerals honouring regional heritage and bespoke oscillating weights engraved with Seddiqi’s anniversary emblem. Revealed in the presence of Hublot CEO Julien Tornare and Mohammed Abdulmagied Seddiqi, the launches underscored a longstanding partnership and highlighted Hublot’s continued commitment to bold design, innovation and the Middle East’s watch community.
Roger Dubuis
Roger Dubuis concluded its “La Placide” series at Dubai Watch Week with the unveiling of Hommage Sukoon Al-Layl, a unique tribute to the Maison’s founder. Presented as a one-of-a-kind creation, the timepiece drew inspiration from the serenity of the desert at night, echoing Mr. Roger Dubuis’ calm character and lifelong passion for astronomical complications. Crafted entirely in platinum, the 38 mm watch featured a layered dial composed of mother-of-pearl, guilloché waves in Astral Blue, and an aventurine moonphase, all designed to capture the stillness and luminosity of the night sky. Powered by the revived RD1472 calibre with a biretrograde perpetual calendar, the piece celebrated heritage, technical mastery, and the expressive spirit that defines the Maison’s identity.
TAG Heuer
TAG Heuer introduced a bold new chapter with the Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph Air 1, a creation that pushes the boundaries of contemporary watchmaking. Weighing just 85 grams, it combines Grade-5 titanium, solid gold elements and an openworked aerodynamic case that appears sculpted by airflow. Designed using Selective Laser Melting, the case forms a futuristic exoskeleton wrapped around a twin-layer honeycomb mesh inspired by hypercar engineering. Inside sits the Calibre TH81-00, TAG Heuer’s most advanced rattrapante movement, developed with Vaucher and beating at 5 Hz with a 65-hour power reserve. Limited to 30 numbered pieces, the Air 1 stands at the apex of TAG Heuer’s performance-driven ethos, fusing motorsport DNA with avant-garde design.
Ulysse Nardin
Ulysse Nardin unveiled the UR-FREAK, a groundbreaking limited edition created in collaboration with URWERK, marking the first partnership between the two independent Swiss maisons. Considered one of the most influential contemporary watches, the original Freak redefined timekeeping by rotating the entire movement to indicate the hours and minutes. In the UR-FREAK, this radical concept merges seamlessly with URWERK’s signature wandering-hour satellite display, resulting in a fully integrated, in-house calibre that unites two avant-garde mechanical architectures. The watch incorporates Ulysse Nardin’s advanced Grinder® system, along with DIAMonSil and silicon innovations first introduced by the brand in 2001. Produced in a strictly limited run of 100 pieces, the UR-FREAK stands as a bold fusion of imagination, engineering and modern horology.
Girard-Perregaux
Girard-Perregaux’s latest creation unites two of its most enduring icons: the Three Bridges, introduced in 1867, and the Laureato, launched in 1975. The new Laureato Three Gold Bridges reinterprets these signatures in a contemporary masterpiece that blends architectural beauty with advanced watchmaking. Powered by the in-house Calibre GP9620, the movement features three openworked white-gold bridges aligned on a single axis, revealing the barrel, gear train and tourbillon in a striking vertical composition. Its inverted design transforms the calibre into a sculptural display of motion and light. With refined finishing, luminous suspended indexes and the Laureato’s distinctive geometry, this creation pays tribute to more than two centuries of innovation while writing a bold new chapter in the Maison’s design legacy.
Gerard Charles
Gerard Charles marked a milestone year at Dubai Watch Week with the debut of the Maestro GC39 Remaster Diamond Baguettes, a dazzling finale to the Maison’s 25th anniversary celebrations. This exclusive creation elevates the commemorative GC39 with a bezel set with 60 baguette-cut diamonds totalling 2.66 carats, bringing a new brilliance to the anniversary line. At its core lies the proprietary meta-guillochage dial, an innovative micro-chemical engraving technique that layers intricate patterns to form a shifting, Baroque-inspired star motif. A rare jumping hours complication at 12 o’clock reflects Gérald Charles Genta’s enduring love of playful yet refined mechanics, while a lapis-lazuli centre and the Maestro’s signature architecture complete a tribute that unites heritage, artistry and technical excellence.
