Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT

The Royal Oak Concept line has been the Audemars Piguet platform for showcasing sophisticated Calibers and advanced materials since its debut in 2002. In 2024, the collection was expanded with the new Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT Large Date made of material that AP calls Chroma Forged Technology (CFT). The innovation is the material, which is a new color forged carbon fiber with luminescent pigments.

According to AP, it’s been eight years since the company last released a forged carbon watch. In fact, Audemars Piguet was the first brand to introduce forged carbon fiber in watchmaking in 2007. It took five years of development for a team of specialists to create a new carbon fiber CFT, lightweight and resistant to shock, heat and humidity. In addition, the lower resin content in CFT means that it is not as scratch-prone as traditional forged carbon.

The real secret of CFT is that it allows you to color carbon fibers directly (rather than stain resin), and they can be positioned as needed, opening up a range of decorative possibilities. First, the carbon fibers are cut into small pieces, stained with pigments, placed in a mold and fixed with resin. These operations are repeated to create layers that contract to expel air bubbles. The material is then solidified under pressure for ten hours to produce a colored patterned carbon block that will be machined for six to eight hours. Audemars Piguet has patented this Chroma Forged Technology manufacturing process.

For its first model using the new Chroma Forged technology, Audemars Piguet flaunts heavy artillery by not only painting forged carbon fiber bright blue, but also adding luminescent pigments. The carbon fiber CFT case of the new Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT Large Date with a diameter of 43 mm and a thickness of 17.4 mm includes blue luminescent pigments penetrating the material. The fibers of the case glow in the dark — the effect is reminiscent of Vincent Van Gogh’s “Starry Night”. The case is crowned with a black octagonal ceramic bezel made from a mixture of matte and polished surfaces. The crown, back cover and buttons are also made of black ceramic. The design language of the Concept models is a futuristic interpretation of the classic Royal Oak — a more curved silhouette to follow the shape of the wrist, but angular in execution due to all the faceted details.

The same black and blue theme can be traced on the delicate dial, carved from a single plate of nickel silver, finished with black PVD and decorated with polished bevels. The technical appearance is enhanced by the blue additional counters and the absence of a logo. SLN was used on the arrows, as well as on the big date and GMT function.

The new iteration combines flyback chronograph, split chronograph, GMT, big date, hours, minutes and small seconds. The large date is located at 12 o’clock with stenciled numerals, and the additional GMT dial is at 3 o’clock, complemented by a day/night indicator; it is adjusted by pressing the coaxial crown button to move the hand by one hour.

On the opposite side of the case at 9 o’clock there is another button that either stops the split hand when necessary or forces it to catch up with the chronograph’s running hand. The split-second wheel and two drive clamps are visible through the back cover, right in the center of the platinum rotor located under the X-shaped bridge holding them in place. The movement that combines all functions is the Calibre 4407, which debuted in 2023 and is based on the new generation of the 2019 flyback chronograph movement from AP. The 638-piece self-winding movement operates at a speed of 28,800 beats per hour (4 Hz) and provides a minimum of 70 hours of power reserve.

The blue rubber strap with black details is equipped with a titanium folding clasp. The AP provides an optional black rubber strap with blue details, which can be easily replaced using a quick-change strap system. The cost of the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept Split-Seconds Chronograph GMT Large Date is 206,800 USD.