The Académie des Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) has selected 84 timepieces from 320 entries across 194 brands for the first round of voting, spread across 14 categories competing for 19 prizes including the top Aiguille d'Or award.
Chopard led the field with all six of its submissions reaching the final shortlist, ranging from the L.U.C 1860 to the tabletop piece "The Beehive." Audemars Piguet, Bulgari and Parmigiani Fleurier each received four nominations, while Piaget, H. Moser & Cie and Bovet 1822 earned three apiece.
A notable return came from Blancpain, which entered the Grande Double Sonnerie in the Mechanical Exception category — marking the brand's first participation since 2014, according to industry media.
Other established names on the list include TAG Heuer, represented twice with the Monaco Evergraph among chronographs and the Monaco Chronograph in the entry-level Petite Aiguille category; IWC Schaffhausen; Hermès; Girard-Perregaux; Grand Seiko; and Louis Vuitton, which featured a table clock co-developed with De Bethune.
Smaller manufactures also secured places. Favre Leuba entered the Chief Skeleton in the Challenge category, earning the traditional brand's first nomination since its relaunch two years ago. Neuchâtel-based Louis Moinet competed in the same category with its 1816 Chronograph, alongside both Audemars Piguet and TAG Heuer.
A 24-member jury chaired by Wei Koh, founder of the watch publication Revolution, will decide the winners. The panel meets in private in Geneva days before the November 7 ceremony, voting confidentially under notarial supervision. The academy's membership of over 1,000 industry figures contributes one-third of the result via digital voting.
"We are aware that we face a considerable task," Koh said in the announcement. "Given the incredible creativity of this year's candidates, particularly two fully open categories such as the Prix de la Montre Iconique, where we must identify the timepiece with the most outstanding iconic qualities from across the entire watchmaking industry."
Before the awards ceremony at the Bâtiment des Forces Motrices in Geneva, the nominated pieces embark on a global tour. The first stop is Mumbai from September 28 to October 1 — a premiere for India's commercial capital, organized in partnership with retailer Ethos Watches.
The exhibition then moves to Bangkok (October 15-18) and Geneva, where the Musée d'Art et d'Histoire displays all 84 pieces from October 29 to November 15, comprising 78 wristwatches and six mechanical movements. The tour concludes in London, where Watches of Switzerland exhibits the winning models from November 18 to 23.
