For more than a decade, Bvlgari has treated the millimetre like its greatest rival. Every fraction shaved from the Octo Finissimo has pushed mechanical watchmaking a little further, and in 2025, that obsession reached a new high with the 1.85mm Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon — the world’s thinnest flying tourbillon and one of the most extraordinary watches the Roman maison has ever created.

So, where exactly do you go after making watchmaking history? For Bvlgari, that answer lies in chasing another world record. At Watches and Wonders 2026, the Italian luxury house is looking at the Octo Finissimo from a different angle, turning its attention to proportions, comfort and the art of doing things “A Regola D’arte” — with precision, skill and an unmistakably Italian sense of style.

The headline is a new 37mm Octo Finissimo collection, with four slimmer, more compact watches joining the family. The unmistakable octagonal architecture remains, but beneath the sharp, Roman-inspired lines lies a newly developed movement designed for smaller proportions. And because this is Bvlgari, the collection also makes room for a minute repeater that brings a touch of mechanical music into the mix.

Bvlgari has also revisited last year’s record-breaking Ultra Tourbillon, giving it a precious platinum makeover that pairs its impossibly thin construction with brilliant blue details and an even more exclusive production run. From a smaller Octo Finissimo to one of its most extravagant creations yet. Here’s everything Bvlgari brought to Watches and Wonders 2026.

Winning the Tourbillon Watch Prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève last year, the Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon returns for 2026 in a considerably more extravagant form. Bvlgari has taken one of its greatest modern watchmaking achievements and firmly moved it into precious-metal territory, giving the record holder a richer, more luxurious personality without altering the architecture that made it so remarkable in the first place.

Across the skeletonized display, brilliant blue tones lend new energy to the exposed mechanics, while an original galvanic treatment on the dedicated mainplate adds further depth. A steel ratchet wheel remains proudly visible, and the integrated bracelet alternates between satin-brushed and polished surfaces, allowing the platinum to play with light along the Octo Finissimo’s sharp geometric lines.

As with last year’s model, the centre houses the hand-wound BVF 900 flying tourbillon calibre, measuring an almost unbelievable 1.55 mm thick. Beating at 28,800 vibrations per hour (4 Hz), the movement delivers a 42-hour power reserve and makes much of its mechanical construction part of the watch’s visual identity. When the entire watch is only 1.85 mm thick, seeing the movement laid out this openly makes the engineering even harder to ignore.

The original titanium version was all about proving what Bvlgari could achieve at the very edge of ultra-thin watchmaking. This platinum edition feels more like a celebration of that achievement. It doesn’t need another record or a completely new mechanical trick to make its point; precious metal, brilliant blue and the unmistakable Octo Finissimo architecture are more than enough to give one of Bvlgari’s most technically impressive watches an entirely new character, making it truly unique and elegant.

Few watches make complicated engineering look quite as effortless as the Octo Finissimo. That sense of sprezzatura, an Italian word meaning “studied nonchalance” or the art of making style and elegance appear effortless, has long been part of the collection’s character. From its sharp Roman-inspired geometry to its ultra-thin proportions, the Octo Finissimo wears its technical complexity lightly. For 2026, Bvlgari carries that philosophy into a more compact 37mm form, bringing greater refinement and comfort to the wrist without losing the architectural presence that made the collection so recognisable.

Four watches make up the new 37mm family, each bringing its own personality to the Octo Finissimo line. Three are powered by Bvlgari’s newly developed BVF 100 automatic calibre and arrive in sandblasted titanium, satin-polished titanium and satin-polished yellow gold. The fourth keeps the sandblasted titanium construction but takes a more complicated route with a manually wound minute repeater.

The real story, however, sits inside the first three watches. Developed and validated over three years at Bvlgari’s Swiss workshop, the BVF 100 uses a highly efficient micro-rotor to wind a high-energy barrel within a remarkably compact architecture. The new calibre measures just 31mm in diameter and 2.35mm thick, dimensions specifically developed around the smaller Octo Finissimo case.

Interestingly, the BVF 100 is actually 0.12mm thicker than the movement found inside the 40mm Octo Finissimo. Yet Bvlgari has managed to reduce its overall volume by 20 per cent while still delivering an impressive 72-hour power reserve. Three full days from a movement this compact is no small achievement, especially when every fraction of a millimetre matters.

The smaller architecture also makes a noticeable difference on the wrist. The assembled watch weighs just 65 grams, giving the 37mm Octo Finissimo an incredibly light and comfortable presence for everyday wear. Bvlgari has paid just as much attention to the finer details, from the redesigned profile of the octagonal screws to the radiating Côtes de Genève across the bridges and mainplate — a more demanding motif than traditional straight Geneva stripes.

And then the Octo Finissimo decides to sing. The 37mm Minute Repeater is powered by Bvlgari’s in-house BVL 362 hand-wound calibre and housed in sandblasted titanium, a material chosen not only for its lightness but also for its acoustic qualities. The two-hammer mechanism chimes the time from within the ultra-thin case, bringing a little mechanical theatre to a collection that has never been particularly interested in taking the easy route.

With the Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon Platinum and the new 37mm collection, Bvlgari has shown two very different sides of the same watchmaking philosophy. One takes ultra-thin engineering and dresses it in precious platinum, while the other looks towards smaller proportions, everyday comfort and a brand-new movement built for what comes next.

What we particularly like is that Bvlgari hasn’t lost sight of what made the Octo Finissimo special in the first place. Roman architecture, sharp geometry, and almost impossibly thinness are all still there, but the collection continues to evolve rather than simply repeat itself. Add a little ‘Sprezzatura’ to the mix, and Bvlgari’s road ahead looks rather elegant indeed.