How to win a GPHG

The Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève trophy at the exhibition of the nominees. © GPHG / The Hour Glass

On Saturday 7 November, the Bâtiment des Forces Motrices in Geneva hosts the 26th Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève ceremony. There are 84 nominated pieces and 20 prizes, including the Aiguille d'Or. Who chooses, how is the vote held and what has changed this year?

Step one: the Academy

It all starts with the GPHG Academy, made up of more than a thousand people from the world of watchmaking. Its members propose models, and brands may enter those or others of their choice. In 2026, entries ran until 19 June, and only pieces marketed after May 2025 and by the end of October 2026 were eligible.

Over the summer, the Academy voted to choose the nominees, announced on 1 September: 84 pieces, six in each of the 14 categories.

Naoya Hida & Co. NH Type8A, 31 mm, Time Only category. © GPHG

Step two: the jury and the second vote

The jury has 24 members and is chaired for the first time by Wei Koh, founder of Revolution, who succeeds Nick Foulkes. Half the jurors are drawn by lot from the Academy, and the other half are chosen by the president. The CEO of the brand that won the previous year's Aiguille d'Or is also invited: this year it is Gregory Kissling of Breguet.

A few days before the ceremony, the jury meets behind closed doors in Geneva, under notarial supervision. It examines the 84 pieces in person, debates them and votes by secret ballot. At the same time, the whole Academy votes online. The final result combines the two: the jury counts for two-thirds and the Academy for one-third.

The jury examines the 84 pieces in person and votes by secret ballot. The Academy, online, counts for one-third of the result.

Asked what he is looking for, Wei Koh told Euronews it is singularity, «a voice that's really unique». He also recalled an image from François-Paul Journe: watchmaking is one continuous wall, and anyone entering the craft should add at least one brick.

Blancpain Grande Double Sonnerie, Mechanical Exception category. Eight years of development and four hammers, to play two melodies. © GPHG

What changed in 2026

• The men's and ladies' categories are gone. They give way to two technical categories, Essential and Complication.

• There is a new category, Gemset, for watches with up to six carats of gemstones. The Jewellery category is kept for pieces led by the jewellery.

• One-of-a-kind pieces are accepted only in the Jewellery and Mechanical Clock categories.

• The Iconic Watch Prize now covers all eligible pieces, even those not entered.

• The Special Jury Prize may also go to a brand, entered or not, as well as to individuals and institutions.

• The ceremony is held in English for the first time.

Rexhep Rexhepi Chronograph Flyback, the watchmaker's first complication under his own name. © GPHG

The Aiguille d'Or

Awarded since 2001, the Aiguille d'Or honours the most remarkable piece of the year across all categories. In 2025 it went to the Breguet Classique Souscription 2025, a watch with a single hand. The winner cannot compete the following year, which is why Breguet is not in the running.

Competing is each brand's own decision. This year, the list of nominees brings together large manufactures and independent workshops from several countries. One example is Moscow's Konstantin Chaykin, with the ThinKing Mystery.

Konstantin Chaykin ThinKing Mystery: the components are spread across a single plane. © GPHG

L'Épée 1839 The Gekko, a wall clock in the shape of a lizard, Mechanical Clock category. © GPHG

How to follow it

The live broadcast is on gphg.org, from 6.30 pm Geneva time (5.30 pm in Lisbon). Anyone in the city can see the 84 pieces at the Musée d'Art et d'Histoire until 15 November. The same weekend, Geneva also hosts the watch auctions by Phillips, Antiquorum, Sotheby's and Christie's.