The 10 Coolest New Watches That Dropped in May

It felt like the whole watch world was talking about the Swatch and Audemars Piguet collab throughout May, with the new Royal Pop pocket watch popping off online and in stores across the globe. But there were plenty of other releases of note this month.

AP itself unveiled a limited-edition Royal Oak Concept Flying TourbillonTourbillonA watch complication invented around 1801 by Abraham-Louis Breguet that rotates the escapement in a cage to counter the effects of gravity on accuracy. Tourbillons are mesmerizing and very difficultGo to Tourbillon Glossary in partnership with Tokyo-based jewelry and fashion brand Ambush. Jaeger-LeCoultre debuted three dazzling new Reverso cocktail watches, two of which were first spotted on the wrists of Tyriq Withers and Finn Wolfhard at the Met Gala, along with a limited-edition Reverso Hybris and an exclusive Duometre Heliotourbillon Perpetual. Breitling let fly fresher, more refined versions of the iconic Chronomat sports watch, with actor Austin Butler, NBA star Giannis Antetokounmpo, and soccer star Erling Haaland fronting the campaign. Panerai dropped a skeletonized Submersible GMT featuring an ultra-lightweight titanium case. Urwerk released the third and final UR-10 SpaceMeter, farewelling the model less than a year after launch. Glashütte Original gave us another Sixties Annual Edition with a groovy dial. Last but certainly not least, H. Moser & Cie. rolled out a Streamliner Small Seconds with a gorgeous green dial. 

Below are the best watch releases of the month.

Urwerk UR-10 Spacemeter Blue

Urwerk is saying goodbye to the UR-10 Spacemeter in style. The indie watchmaker, founded by Martin Frei and Felix Baumgartner in 1997, dropped the third and final iteration of the model this month. First unveiled in 2025, the aptly named Spacemeter measures the distances our planet travels across the time-space continuum. The counter at 2 o’clock shows every 10 km the Earth covers in its daily rotation, the subdial at 4 o’clock indicates every 1,000 km the Earth travels on its solar orbit, and the register at 9 o’clock combines both trajectories to display every 1,000 km of rotation and 64,000 km of solar orbit on two synchronized scales. On the reverse side, a peripheral hand traces the hours on a 24-hour scale, reflecting the full rotation of Earth. Urwerk previously released two limited editions with titanium cases and either gray or black dials. The newest iteration retains the titanium case but has a bold blue face.

“With the UR-10, we wanted to broaden the perspective, to remind us that we live aboard a celestial body in constant motion,” Frei said in a statement. This final blue edition seemed the most fitting to us, because it naturally places this timepiece in its true setting: space.”

Limited, again, to 25 pieces, the final edition retails for 70,000 Swiss francs, or about $88,9000.

Audemars Piguet x Swatch Royal Pop

What would our May roundup be without this particular collaboration? Audemars Piguet and Swatch teamed up to release a new pocket watch this month, causing quite the stir online and IRL. Inspired by the AP’s high-end Royal Oak collection and Swatch’s more accessible Pop line, the aptly named Royal Pop features a candy-hued bioceramic case and a matching colorful strap. The octagonal silhouette and tapisserie dial evoke Gérald Genta’s original 1970s Royal Oak, while the palette is pure 1980s Swatch. Inside lies a new version of Swatch’s Sistem51 caliber. There are eight Pops in total, with each one able to fit different casings. They retail for between $400 and $420.

Panerai Submersible GMT

Panerai dove even deeper into watch tech this month, unveiling a new Submersible GMT at the bleeding edge of innovation. The newcomer pairs a fully skeletonized movement (caliber P.4001/S) with a large yet light titanium case to reduce overall weight and improve performance. The 47 mm case is created with Titanium DMLS (Direct Metal Laser Sintering), the 3-D-printing process that uses high-powered lasers to melt and fuse titanium powder to build metal parts layer by layer. Cases in titanium DMLS are approximately 25 percent lighter than those in standard titanium and 50 percent lighter than those in steel, according to Panerai. The tool watch also offers water resistance up to 1,640 feet, a unidirectional rotating bezel for precise dive timing, a robust three-day power reserve, a versatile GMT function, and the watchmaker’s patented polarized date display that hides everything except the date.

“The new Submersible GMT PAM01495, with its advanced technical features, is the direct result of the relentless dedication and pioneering work undertaken by our R&D department in Neuchâtel,” Alessandro Ficarelli, chief marketing and product officer of Panerai, said in a statement. “This 47 mm high-tech DMLS titanium case encapsulates the pillars of our DNA—water resistance, power reserve, robust construction, and superior luminosity—which are continually upgraded to offer uncompromised performance.

The watch will be available exclusively in Panerai boutiques and will retail for $50,300.

Jaeger-LeCoultre Reversos and Duometre Heliotourbillon Perpetual

Jaeger-LeCoultre picked quite the moment to debut the latest Reversos, with the cocktail watches first appearing at this year’s Met Gala on the wrists of actors Tyriq Withers and Finn Wolfhard. The three references are a fresh, slightly more glitzy take on the Reverso Tribute Monoface “Or Deco” watch from 2025, showcasing the same sleek, rectangular case, gorgeous Milanese mesh bracelet, and grained dial with the classic railway-style minute track, Dauphine hands, and hand-applied hour markers. But what sets them apart from last year’s reference is the precious stones. The two white-gold iterations are adorned with emeralds or sapphires, while the rose-gold example is topped with rubies. Each style is limited to 30 pieces, with prices on request.

JLC didn’t stop there. The watchmaker also released two riffs on the 2025 “Or Deco.” One is basically the same but finished in 18-karat white gold; the other is decked out in the same pink gold but is smaller and closer to the size of the original Reversos from the 1930s.

On the high-watchmaking front, JLC added a new Reverso to the Hybris series. The limited editionLimited EditionA product produced in deliberately restricted numbers, often numbered, signed, and distinguished by special materials or design. Limited editions create scarcity, urgency, and desirability, and they are common across watches,Go to Limited Edition Glossary features an image of Pegasus, the majestic, winged stallion from ancient Greek mythology, engraved on the case. JLC says this is the first Reverso to have a fully engraved case.

The watchmaker also unveiled a successor to the Duometre Heliotourbillon Perpetual from 2024. This iteration of the mind-bogglingly complex timepiece is finished in platinum rather than pink gold, adding an extra layer of exclusivity.

H. Moser & Cie. Streamliner Small Seconds

H. Moser & Cie. gave us another fun spin on its flagship Streamliner this month, unveiling a new iteration with a fumé grand feu enamel dial in an eye-catching lime green. Housed within a 39 mm cushion-shaped steel case, the minimalist dial features only a small seconds display at 6 o’clock, meaning nothing detracts from that bright hue. Flip it over, and the sapphire gives a full view of the in-house automatic movement (HMC 500) with contemporary Moser finishing. Rounding out the design is a sleek integrated bracelet in steel. The boutique exclusive is priced at 30,000 Swiss francs, or about $39,500.

Breitling Chronomat

Breitling let no fewer than 22 new Chronomats fly in May. The legendary sports watch, originally made for the Italian Air Force’s aerobatics team in the 1980s, has been given a modern makeover, with the new references showcasing slimmer cases, cleaner dials, and a more integrated bracelet design. The lineup includes a thinner, more wearable version of the flagship Chronomat B01 42 chronographChronographA watch complication that incorporates a stopwatch function, controlled by pushers on the case and displayed on small subdials. Originally developed for timing events, the chronograph remains popular for itsGo to Chronograph Glossary, a new time-and-date Chronomat featuring a 40 mm case and the in-house B31 movement, and smaller 36 mm variants showcasing fancy touches such as mother-of-pearl dials and diamond-set bezels. Prices range from $5,950 to $49,900.

Glashütte Original Sixties Annual Edition

Glashütte Original unveiled a downright groovy Sixties Annual Edition for 2026. As with the previous references in the line, the latest edition pays tribute to the Swinging Sixties with a vintage-inspired design, but features a fresh purple dial with a luminous finish. It was, like all the others, produced at a specialized dial-making facility in Pforzheim, Germany, requiring much meticulous work to come to fruition. To start with, thin strips of bronze were stamped and milled to create a pattern that evokes the parallel grooves of a vinyl record. The dial is then carefully domed and given a galvanic coat of gold, before translucent purple lacquer is applied by hand and fired in a kiln. That striking purple centerpiece is complemented by a 42 mm steel case and a black fabric strap, with an automatic movementAutomatic MovementA mechanical watch movement powered by a rotor that winds the mainspring through the natural motion of the wearer's wrist, removing the need for a battery. Prized by collectors forGo to Automatic Movement Glossary (Calibre 39-34) beating inside. Price TBC.

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Concept Flying Tourbillon

Swatch isn’t the only one Audemars Piguet has been working with. The Swiss watchmaker also teamed up with Yoon Ahn and Verbal, the two cofounders of the Tokyo-based jewelry and fashion brand Ambush, on a limited-edition Royal Oak Concept Flying Tourbillon. The 38.5 mm titanium timepiece features a partially open-worked black aventurine dial with a flying tourbillonTourbillonA watch complication invented around 1801 by Abraham-Louis Breguet that rotates the escapement in a cage to counter the effects of gravity on accuracy. Tourbillons are mesmerizing and very difficultGo to Tourbillon Glossary at 6 o’clock. The top of the tourbillon cage has been anodised in red—a first for AP—adding a splash of color to an otherwise quite dark design. “Red has always been a powerful color for us, while the tourbillon cage represents the heart of the watch—the force that keeps everything in motion,” Verbal said in a press statement. “Red evokes the Earth’s core: the origin point, the source of energy and, ultimately, the beginning of how we measure time itself.” Limited to just 150 examples, the piece is priced at 176,800 Swiss francs, or about $225,000.

This article originally appeared in Robb Report US.