If you’re trying to mindfully navigate through the sh**strom that’s surrounding the watch world these days regarding the Swatch X AP Royal Pop collaboration, then you, dear reader, have reached an intellectually neutral destination.

Because I’m not here to tell you whether to camp outside of your local Swatch store or not, or whether AP is “falling out”, or show you more AI slop designs… 

But you already knew that before clicking on one of the Time-Telling Magazine articles. 

This article puts things in perspective for you. Because Audemars Piguet and the Swatch Group are not complete strangers. It is true that this previous “relationship” wasn’t commercialized, but it is nevertheless something crucial to keep in mind, if you’re someone interested in horology and not the noise of the 2000 watch influences you follow on Instagram.

So, before people started debating whether a Royal Oak-inspired plastic watch is “good for the culture”, it’s worth remembering that AP and Swatch Group had already collaborated on something infinitely more important than a hype release.

The hairspring. Tiny component. Massive significance. And unless you’re the type of person who spends evenings reading technical patents instead of Reddit arguments, you probably never heard about it.

Back in the early 2000s, the Swiss watch industry quietly entered what was essentially a technological cold war. Not against smartwatches, not against fashion brands, but against magnetism itself.

Mechanical watches were suddenly living in a completely different world than the one they were designed for. Phones, laptops, tablets, speakers, airport scanners, magnetic handbag clasps, induction chargers… modern life had become a minefield for traditional movements.

And the problem was serious because a magnetized hairspring can completely destroy the accuracy of a watch. The coils begin sticking together, the oscillation changes, and suddenly your meticulously adjusted luxury timepiece starts running like it just drank three espressos and developed anxiety.

This is where the story becomes interesting, because the hairspring is not just another watch component. It is the regulating organ of the movement. The literal heartbeat of a mechanical watch. And historically, one company controlled that beat more than anyone else: Nivarox-FAR, owned by Swatch Group.

For decades, even brands competing directly against Swatch Group depended on Swatch infrastructure to manufacture accurate mechanical watches. Which created a strange dynamic within the Swiss industry. Publicly, brands sold independence, exclusivity, identity. Behind the scenes, many of them were sourcing critical components from the same industrial ecosystem.

And during the 2000s, tensions surrounding that dependence started growing.

Nicolas Hayek had already made it clear that Swatch Group wanted to progressively reduce external supply to competing brands. Suddenly, the entire industry realized something uncomfortable: if Swatch controlled the hairsprings, then Swatch indirectly controlled Swiss mechanical watchmaking itself.

That fear triggered one of the most important unseen technological races in modern horology. Rolex developed Parachrom. Patek Philippe pushed Spiromax silicon technology. Omega went all-in on anti-magnetic engineering. And then, in 2018, Swatch Group and Audemars Piguet officially announced the development of Nivachron.

Yes. Audemars Piguet. The fiercely independent Le Brassus manufacture that collectors love to portray as existing on its own secluded mountain above the rest of the industry had quietly collaborated with the largest watch conglomerate on earth.

And the funny part is that almost nobody noticed. Probably because there wasn’t a queue outside a boutique for it.

Nivachron was different from silicon solutions because it preserved a metallic architecture while dramatically improving resistance to magnetism, shocks, and temperature variations. In simple terms, it modernized the traditional hairspring without abandoning traditional watchmaking altogether.

That matters more than it sounds. Because silicon, despite being technically brilliant, has always created philosophical debates in high horology. It’s difficult to reshape, difficult to regulate traditionally, and for some purists, simply feels too industrial. Nivachron became a middle ground. Advanced enough for the realities of modern life, but still mechanically familiar.

And here’s the part that makes this entire story fascinating. Audemars Piguet did not collaborate on a limited-edition hype product. They collaborated on infrastructure.On metallurgy. On chronometry. On the survival of the mechanical watch in the digital age.

The same technology partially developed alongside one of the most prestigious names in haute horlogerie would later end up inside watches from Tissot, Hamilton, Longines, Mido, and even Swatch itself. Which completely breaks the fantasy most people have about the Swiss watch industry.

Because watchmaking has never been as isolated as marketing wants you to believe. The brands compete, absolutely. Ruthlessly, sometimes. But they also coexist within an interconnected industrial network where suppliers, research laboratories, movement manufacturers, and technical patents constantly overlap behind the curtain.

Nivachron simply exposed that reality publicly. So whether the Royal Pop collaboration excites you, horrifies you, or simply exhausts you, remember this:

AP and Swatch Group already worked together long before colorful bioceramic cases entered the conversation. They just did it somewhere infinitely less visible. Inside the heartbeat of the watch itself.

And this is SO cool to me and my fellow watch nerds. I made an instagram reel an hour ago and the response is just amazing. People really didn’t know about this. Even big journalists and creators. And that tells you something.

It’s not every day that one gets the privilege to step into rooms like the one where I spent my past Wednesday evening. 

A room full of geniuses and ingenuity. A room full of passion and relentless curiosity. A room that personifies the why in why would someone be a watch lover. 

I had the immense honor of attending Blancpain’s private event in Madrid, Spain, to discover and celebrate the marvels of the Villeret collection. A collection of high watchmaking pieces with technology that’s never been seen before. 

This article is of course about that, but also about the full unforgettable experience. 

I knew that I had to join the other VIP members of Blancpain, about 2 weeks prior to the event. When Ms Alexandra – current Blancpain, Madrid’s boutique director and a very dear friend of mine – sent me the invite, it took me a while to wipe the HUGE smile on my face. But once we got the chance to get on a call, Alexandra’s enthusiasm made me drop everything I had planned for the week, to be there for her and witness the astonishing work she and her team had done. 

Upon arriving at the boutique, I was warmly welcomed by the marvelous staff and the incredible brand manager Ms Lara Bartolomé; with whom I had a nice conversation about what they had planned for us and what Blancpain really represents from both a journalist/enthusiast’s (Me) and a company executive’s perspectives. However, the inflection point of our conversation was when Ms Lara mentioned that the director of the Grandes Complications department at Blacpain’s Le Brassus HQ, was on his way to join us for a masterclass about the Villeret pieces. 

Behind my understated “Ow interesting” was a “Ow my god this is HUGE !” internal reaction. 

And just when I thought the surprise was big enough, Ms Lara says “His name is Mustapha and he’s actually Moroccan”. I’ll let you guys imagine my reaction when I feel a tap on my shoulder and a “Salam Walid !” (That’s Hello Walid in Arabic). The embraces, a shocked Walid and a room of 5 people laughing their hearts out, was a moment that should have been captured for my future kids to see. But more on that later.

I went up to the VIP lounge with Ms Alexandra (my designated adult LOL) to meet the rest of the team, chat freely, and get the chance to see everything before the other guests arrived. Mr Mustapha and I had the chance to talk about his 30+ years career with Blancpain, the Time-Telling magazine and of course ourselves. The cheerful man did not shy away from showing me watch blueprints and other technical documents that I wish weren’t so top secret for me to photograph and re-read. 

We went deep into Grand Complications and, let me flex here for a second, many “WOWs” came out of his mouth when he would listen to me talk about some weird technical thing that he never thought was public knowledge. What can I say, your boy is a nerd…

Anyways, let me spare you my fan-girling and get to the watches: The Villeret collection.

 As the Blancpain website states, Blancpain’s native village of Villeret lends its name to the most classic collection from the Brand. Firmly anchored in tradition, these models exemplify their roots and embody the prime aesthetic choices. The purity of their lines, the clarity of their dials and the slenderness of their double-stepped cases express essentials with timeless elegance.

The Villeret collection incorporates the results of recent research conducted by Blancpain in the field of movement making. Under-lug correctors, secured calendar and moon phase mechanisms, exceptional power reserves: everything possible is done to enhance the timepieces.

The brand subtly and consistently reinterprets this collection with a contemporary face that nonetheless preserves its emblematic aesthetic. Far from representing a break with tradition, the new models reassert the Maison’s enduring attachment to authentic horological values, powerfully demonstrated by grand feu enamel dials and serpentine hands for the calendar display.

The standout pieces.

The Villeret Tourbillon Carrousel

The tourbillon and the carrousel are two of the major devices aimed at reducing gravity-related effects on the running of the movement. For the first time in horological history, Blancpain introduces a wristwatch combining these two regulators.

This specific piece is crafted in 18k red gold. Its 44.6 mm case houses a pristine white grand feu enamel dial and the manual-winding Caliber 2322 movement, composed of 378 components and 70 jewels. This movement has an impressive 168-hour power reserve, and what sets it apart is its unique combination of a flying tourbillon at 12 o’clock and a flying carrousel at 6 o’clock. The first in wristwatch history in which the two work in unison to counteract the effects of gravity on the movement’s accuracy.

Another variation/configuration is this beautiful ref. 2322-3653-55B with a sunburst green dial. One of my favorite signature details from Blancpain. 

Villeret Carrousel Répétition Minutes

Here comes the big girl. And this is what I meant by a “Grandes Complications collection”.

Encased in a 45 mm red gold case with a thickness of 15.35 mm, the watch exudes Haute Horlogerie status. 

The white grand feu enamel dial serves as a canvas for the intricate mechanics beneath, while the sapphire crystal case back offers a captivating view of the automatic Caliber 1736A movement. Comprising 444 components and 54 jewels, this is a minute repeater movement that also happens to house a Carrousel. 

This grand complication is the premiere in the history of watchmaking, combining a one-minute flying Carrousel and a minute repeater with cathedral chimes.

“The Villeret collection symbolises Blancpain’s history and longevity. It enjoys an incredibly solid foundation across all of watchmaking’s celebrated complications, as well as many Blancpain exclusives such as our Traditional Chinese Calendar and Carrousel watches.”

Marc A. Hayek, Président & CEO

As I stated before, this article is not only about the watches presented at the event, but also about the personal experience that I lived with the people who were involved in such a special occasion. 

The amazing staff, the very friendly and professional executives, the other collectors, making new friends, getting to know Mr. Mustapha and for the first time in my life not shying away from being the nerd that I am…etc

And speaking of my new genius Moroccan friend, he gifted me his Blancpain X Swatch watch ! The man was double wristing the hell out of it and a pièce unique Flying tourbillon. So when I teased him about it, he took off the Scuba and handed it to me with the biggest smile you could ever imagine.

So now on my to do list, framing the watch and our photograph is my top priority. 

Thank you for your support my dear friends. None of this would matter if I had nobody to write for.