Audemars Piguet pulled out of SIHH in 2019, the same year Richard Mille left. The reasoning at the time was that AP wanted to control its own calendar and presentation. Six years later, the brand is walking back into the Geneva fair, and it is bringing enough new product to fill a small catalogue.
Under CEO Ilaria Resta, AP has already released more than 20 new references in its February "first semester" drop, and the brand is expected to add more novelties at Watches and Wonders when doors open Monday. The return is symbolically significant. AP is one of the Big Three in haute horlogerie, alongside Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin, and its absence from the fair left a visible gap.
The movement that took five years
The headline piece from February is the Royal Oak Selfwinding Chronograph 38mm, now powered by the new in-house Calibre 6401. This movement replaces a Frederic Piguet-derived calibre that AP had been using in this case size for nearly three decades.
The 6401 is not a minor revision. It took five years to develop and is built around a newly patented vertical clutch designed to reduce complexity while improving the tactile feel of the chronograph pushers. The column wheel architecture is paired with an instant-jumping date complication.
The numbers tell the story of the upgrade. The new calibre has 348 parts (up from 304), 44 jewels (up from 37), runs at 28,800 vibrations per hour (up from 21,600), and carries a 55-hour power reserve (up from 40). The watch remains 11.1mm thick and now shows the movement through a sapphire display caseback, which the previous generation lacked.
Three versions are available at launch. A stainless steel model with the blue Grande Tapisserie dial at $43,000, a rose gold variant with a grey reverse-panda dial at $84,500, and a diamond-set rose gold model with a sand gold dial at $91,600. Fratello Watches noted the steel version's price increase of $1,500 over the outgoing model, which is modest given the movement is entirely new.
The wider collection
The Calibre 6401 chronograph is not the only thing AP is bringing to Geneva. The February drop also included skeletonized perpetual calendar Royal Oaks powered by Calibre 7139, one of which comes in titanium with a BMG (bulk metallic glass) bezel. Malachite stone dials appeared on yellow gold Royal Oaks in 37mm and 41mm. There is a Neo Frame Jumping Hour complication, and for completists, a 150 Heritage Pocket Watch carrying 47 functions that was developed during the brand's 150th anniversary year.
SJX Watches went hands-on with the 38mm chronograph and described the pusher feel as "noticeably cleaner" than the previous generation, which aligns with what the vertical clutch redesign was intended to achieve.
Why the return matters
AP's absence from Geneva was never about capability. It was about independence. The brand preferred to present on its own schedule, at its own venues, on its own terms. Coming back to Watches and Wonders signals that the fair has become large enough and important enough that even the most independent-minded brands see value in being there.
With 66 exhibiting brands and an expected 60,000 visitors this year, the fair has grown well beyond its SIHH origins. AP's return, alongside newcomers like Sinn Spezialuhren, Corum, and Credor, makes the 2026 edition the most complete representation of the Swiss and Japanese watch industries under one roof.
The AP stand opens to press on Monday, April 14.
Sources: Robb Report, Fratello Watches, Monochrome Watches, SJX Watches, Watch Collecting Lifestyle, Gear Patrol.
