Le Brassus, 19 November 2023 – Swiss Haute Horlogerie manufacturer Audemars Piguet is delighted to have participated in the Dubai Watch Week that took place from 16 to 20 November 2023 at the gate of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). The brand notably participated in the Horology Forum during which it announced its new partnership with the Dubai Future Foundation—a long-term collaboration seeking to push innovation further within and beyond Haute Horlogerie. Audemars Piguet also hosted a large-scale exhibition entitled Seek Beyond that explored the Manufacture’s endless journey to new horizons.
DISCUSSING PARTNERSHIPS AT THE HOROLOGY FORUM
Audemars Piguet’s Chief Executive Officer François-Henry Bennahmias took part in a public panel entitled “All for One, One for All,” hosted by Austen Chu, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Wristcheck, as part of the Dubai Watch Week’s Horology Forum. This panel, which discussed the impact of collaborations in the watchmaking industry, was also attended by Omar Johnson, former CMO at Beats by Dre and Apple’s former VP marketing.
Preceding this panel, François-Henry Bennahmias and His Excellency Omar Sultan Al Olama, United Arab Emirates Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications announced the long-term partnership between Audemars Piguet and the Dubai Future Foundation, of which H. E. Omar Sultan Al Olama serves as Board of Trustee member and Deputy Managing Director. This partnership, which seeks to drive innovative initiatives to advance the field of Haute Horlogerie, continues Audemars Piguet’s longstanding legacy of cross-disciplinary collaborations with technology and innovation leaders. These collaborations have inspired the brand to move its craft forward, while encouraging talents to broaden their horizons and skills to give life to unexpected projects.
“We are immensely proud to collaborate with distinguished brand Audemars Piguet. This partnership not only underscores the synergy between tradition and innovation, but also the shared vision of pioneering the future. Through this alliance with the Dubai Future Foundation, we aim to elevate the watchmaking industry to new heights, marrying its rich heritage with the dynamic realm of advanced technologies. Together, we envision a future where technology and watchmaking craftsmanship converge to create groundbreaking masterpieces.”
H. E. Omar Sultan Al Olama
Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy and Remote Work Applications, Deputy Managing Director of Dubai Future Foundation
“Our new partnership with Dubai Future Foundation promotes talents and cutting-edge research collaboration. Their creative minds and distinctive perspectives as leaders in the field of innovation will help us imagine and shape the future of Haute Horlogerie, with the unveiling of our first project in 2025.”
François-Henry Bennahmias
Chief Executive Officer, Audemars Piguet
THE SEEK BEYOND EXHIBITION IN A NUTSHELL
Seek Beyond offered an immersive and interactive journey into Audemars Piguet’s universe, past, present and future and retraced how the brand has repeatedly ventured outside of its comfort zone to push the boundaries of watchmaking. While deeply connected to its origins, it has looked for inspiration in fields as diverse as art, music, sports, entertainment and architecture and established enriching cross-disciplinary dialogues. This mindset has fuelled the teams’ creativity, leading to the development of micro-mechanical wonders that have forged the Manufacture’s own path in the field of Haute Horlogerie since 1875.
Among the heritage and contemporary timepieces exhibited, visitors were immersed in the innovative worlds of the Code 11.59 by Audemars Piguet Ultra-Complication Universelle (RD#4) and the Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT Large Date. Combining ancestral know-how and modern techniques with ergonomics and contemporary aesthetics, these two watches have opened new technical and creative horizons for Audemars Piguet.
The exhibition also shed light onto the Manufacture’s search into materials, gemstones, form language and colour. Visitors could notably admire the exclusive 41 mm Royal Oak Selfwinding Rainbow set, released in 2022, which comprises ten white gold selfwinding hours, minutes and seconds timepieces. Each timepiece is entirely paved with a different baguette-cut coloured gemstone so as to form a rainbow when all the pieces are put side by side.
“Seek Beyond paid tribute to Audemars Piguet past, present and future. Beyond the exhibited watches, visitors were invited to discover the passion of our artisans as well as their quest for new shapes, materials, colours and unexpected complications.”
Sébastian Vivas
Heritage and Museum Director, Audemars Piguet
To further share its passion for its craft, Audemars Piguet participated in the Dubai Watch Week hands-on workshop programme, with two dedicated masterclasses. Visitors were able to try their hand at refined Haute Horlogerie decorations, or explore gemstones and gemsetting under the guidance of experts.
