Bulgari breaks record for world's thinnest watch with the Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC

In 2022, Italian company Bulgari impressed the world of watchmaking with the introduction of the Octo Finissimo Ultra, which has a thickness of only 1.8mm. It was a remarkable achievement, but Bulgari’s R&D department believed there were boundaries yet to be crossed. The team pushed further in their research — with assistance from Concepto (experts in complex mechanisms) — and created another groundbreaking novelty.

Recently, the maison unveiled the Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC, a mechanical watch which is resistant to intense shocks and magnetic fields, yet slimmer than a coin with a thickness of just 1.7mm. The timepiece, limited to 20 units, has certainly set a new bar in high-end mechanical watchmaking.

Director of Bulgari’s watchmaking division Antoine Pin says, “The Octo Finissimo is a vast playground of innovation and design — and a source of unprecedented challenges — for Bulgari’s R&D department. This marks the ninth occasion our engineers, watchmakers and designers have defied the laws of physics to offer complex timepieces of unparalleled slimness.

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The challenge of ensuring adequate rigidity for a watch measuring just 1.70 mm thick was met by crafting the mainplate from resistant tungsten carbide

“These accomplishments go deeper than the watchmaking prowess they represent; they define our DNA. Bulgari stands to innovate, to keep pushing the boundaries and master the art of the extraordinary — and to always surprise.”

The world’s thinnest COSC chronometer undoubtedly challenges the engineers to optimise every inch (or, shall we say, millimetre?) of the watch. A total of 170 components — selected using 1/10-micron optical measuring systems — of the manually wound BVL180 manufacture calibre are assembled on the case back, which also serves as the mainplate.

Time-telling becomes even more interesting as the model comes with a dedicated case equipped with a digital display that helps to programme desired hours and minutes with the touch of a button. The wearer can also scan a Datamatrix at the back of the watch to get extensive information about the structure and components that make up the mighty Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC.

This article first appeared on Apr 22, 2024 in The Edge Malaysia.