Modified on May 18, 2026 ,
Published on May 12, 2026
Swatch
It’s here! The wildly anticipated Audemars Piguet x Swatch collaboration images have finally arrived ahead of its reported in-store launch on May 16. And . . . in a clever move by the duo, it comes in the form of a pocket watch. Some fans on Instagram had already predicted this twist, but regardless, it’s sure to shock some that were expecting to rock it on the wrist. Will we see a procession of hype beasts wearing these so-called Royal Pops on the neck like Flava Flav or attached to Birkins like Labubus? Absolutely. But just for how long is more questionable.
The candy-hued bioceramic Royal Pops come in punchy Memphis Movement-style colors with matching straps. (There are eight total, with each able to fit inside different casings.) Inside, they house a new version of Swatch’s Sistem51 caliber. They are loosely based on the Ref. 5692, the first pocket watch in the Gérald Genta design. According to Sotheby’s, these were created in a limited run in 1979 and sold between 1980 and 1985—the exact era the Swatch watch took off. And AP sent out a message by choosing a pocket watch iteration: That even the oldest forms of the craft still matter. To that end, the brand is donating 100 percent of its proceeds to an initiative supporting the transmission of watchmaking expertise to new generations of burgeoning horologists.
