03 Feb Hublot’s MP-10 Tourbillon is a Ridiculous Feat of Engineering

Each January when LVMH Watch Week rolls around, fans clamber to take a gander at the latest novelties from brands such as TAG Heuer, Zenith and Bulgari, but this year, things are a little different. After a steady rise to prominence, Hublot’s avant-garde approach is beginning to sink in and its latest MP-10 Tourbillon is a perfect example of why. A true feat of modern horological engineering, the Hublot MP-10 Tourbillon Weight Energy System Titanium features no dial, hands or oscillating weight, making us contemplate if it is even a watch at all.

Hublot MP-10 Tourbillon Weight Energy System Titanium

• Brand: Hublot
• Model: MP-10 Tourbillon Weight Energy System Titanium
• Reference: 910.NX.0001.RX
• Diameter: 41.5mm
• Movement: HUB9013 Manufacture Automatic Skeleton Tourbillon
• Water-Resistance: 30m
• Power Reserve: 48 hours
• Availability: Limited to 50 pieces worldwide
• Price: 250,000CHF (AUD$439,000)

One of Hublot’s most ambitious releases to date, the new MP-10 Tourbillon arrives after five years of extensive research and development. Importantly, however, none of the 592 components that comprise the monobloc aluminium piece work to operate hands, as this very unique watch has precisely zero. Instead, Hublot has adorned the watch with four constantly rotating displays. Specifically, the hours and minutes in the upper third of the dial, the circular power reserve in the central third, and the seconds in the lower third which are indicated directly on the tourbillon cage. While that might sound impressive, it’s how the piece comes together that should be acknowledged. In a truly innovative design move, Hublot has fused the calibre with the dial, allowing the time to be read from top to bottom, fluidly and naturally. A completely new take on watch design, the format doesn’t exactly allow for traditional winding, which of course, forced the brand to try something new.

As Hublot explains, its designers developed a system of shock absorbers, with two vertical weights that engage a rack, enabling you to wind the movement bidirectionally. The watch is wound manually via the crown at 12 o’clock, while the time is set using a second crown nestled on the case-back side. This exclusive patent-pending Hublot development offers a power reserve of more than 48 hours. The more you look at the watch, the less it feels like a real development. Like a work of modern art, the new Hublot MP-10 Tourbillon Weight Energy System Titanium is a marvel of design, highlighting the very level of refinement that the Maison has always aimed for. As Ricardo Guadalupe, Hublot CEO explained, the MP lineup is Hublot’s most expansive and this new piece could well be its crowning achievement.

“For a piece to be part of our MP collection, it must not only reinvent existing complications; it must create something exclusive, invent, build and open up new avenues in watchmaking R&D,” Guadalupe said. “I gave our designers and watchmakers carte blanche, and this is the fruit of their labours. From now on, people will talk about the MP-10 Tourbillon Weight Energy System in Titanium in terms of ‘before’ and ‘after.’”While the new Hublot MP-10 Tourbillon Weight Energy System Titanium is undoubtedly the maison’s most impressive release this year, it wasn’t the only new addition to make its debut at LVMH Watch Week 2024. The watchmaker also unveiled a series of colourful new pieces, including a special edition Lunar New Year option.

curated by Ozzie Small