Hot on the heels of its Royal Pop collaboration with Swatch, Audemars Piguet has revealed a new Royal Oak Concept Flying Tourbillon, made in partnership with Yoon Ahn and Verbal, the creative duo behind Tokyo fashion label AMBUSH.
The result is one of the most visually striking limited editions watches in years.
Yoon and Verbal have built a reputation for work that sits at the intersection of fashion, music, and design. Verbal is also a serious watch collector, and the original Royal Oak Concept from 2002 is reportedly one of his most treasured pieces.
The watch looks amazing. It’s built around a black aventurine dial and a vivid red flying tourbillon.
The tourbillon cage features an anodised red aluminium top plate, which is a first for Audemars Piguet, and it positions the complication as both the visual and mechanical heart of the watch.
The case is titanium, measuring 38.5mm (which is very compact by Royal Oak Concept standards). The alternating sandblasted, satin-brushed, and polished surfaces give it that signature high-tech texture, while the black ceramic crown topped with a titanium chip ties it all together.
Inside is the new Calibre 2982, developed specifically for this edition. It builds on the existing Calibre 2964 but leans into the watch’s stripped-back design philosophy.
The partly open-worked architecture pulls your eye toward the movement’s ‘energy flow’, with hand finishing throughout, including microblasting, satin brushing, and polished bevels.
The watch also introduces something new for this size – an interchangeable strap system. It comes with both a black and a red rubber strap, each featuring a micro-mosaic pattern on the outside and a quilted imprint on the inner surface for comfort.
A grey strap is also available on request.
The Royal Oak Concept Flying Tourbillon x Yoon and Verbal is a limited edition of 150 pieces and available now (price on request).
Liked this? I camped in London for the Swatch x Audemars Piguet Royal Pop launch and it was absolute chaos (but also kind of fun)
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