In Douglas Adams’ seminal science fiction novel, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything is … cue drumroll … 42.

For Bvlgari in 2026, however, 42 is clearly well off the mark.

In fact, the last time 42 was a magic number for the watch world was back in the 2000s, when big was bold and 42mm was the sweet spot. But those are bygone days, at least for now, as prevailing tastes turn toward more modest dimensions, a fact that the Italian powerhouse is keenly attuned to going by its latest 2026 showcase.

Certainly, expectations were upended this April at Watches and Wonders when Bvlgari unveiled its new quartet of 37mm Octo Finissimo models. Instead of chasing another world record by going thinner, the Italian house opted to go smaller with a trilogy of automatic references in a brand-new 37mm case, down from the Octo Finissimo standard of 40mm, powered by a purpose-built BVF 100 micro-rotor caliber. There is also a Minute Repeater reference based on 2016’s Caliber BVL 362, similarly housed in a 37mm case.

Bvlgari’s trilogy of 37mm automatics for 2026: (clockwise from top) in sandblasted titanium, polished titanium and, last but not least, yellow gold

For Bvlgari, stepping away from breaking records is a logical next step in the evolution of the Octo Finissimo family.

Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani, Product Creation Executive Director and the man responsible for the design of the Octo Finissimo from its genesis, explains, “Our idea has always been to have the best watch possible in terms of performance, together with the best way to wear it. That’s why in the last 15 years, we were obsessed about the thickness of the watch — because we wanted to push the vanguard and show the capabilities of Bvlgari.” It was a strategy for the times and one that built the legitimacy of Bvlgari in the watch world. Prior to the launch of the Octo Finissimo in 2014, Bvlgari was better known for its high jewelry than high horology. As Stigliani candidly remarks, “When you have to show your capabilities, you want to make things that are more difficult.”

Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani, Bvlgari’s Product Creation Executive Director

Now that Bvlgari has established its watchmaking legitimacy with the Octo Finissimo and its trail of record-breakers and, in the process, expanding its in-house manufacture know-how and vertical integration over the years, things are decidedly different.

“We can finally make things that look easier,” Buonamassa Stigliani quips. “It’s just more mature.”

The operative word here is “look.” As it turned out, there was nothing easy or easier about shaving 3mm off from the 40mm of the Bvlgari Octo Finissimo Automatic to the 37mm of the 2026 novelties.

Downsized and Powered Up

In the grand horological scheme of things, many of Bvlgari’s watchmaking achievements sit at the extreme end of the difficulty scale.

Amongst others are the Octo Finissimo Ultra (2022), which used a tungsten-carbide caseback that doubles as the mainplate to achieve an overall thickness of 1.8mm; the Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC (2024), which achieved COSC certification despite measuring just 1.7mm thick; and the Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon (2025), which fitted a 4Hz flying tourbillon into a watch only 1.85mm thick. Of course, rolling them out on a regular basis to maintain an incredible streak of 10 world records in a little more than 10 years is a challenge of the highest order.

Beginning with the Octo Finissimo Tourbillon (2014), powered by what was then the world’s thinnest hand-wound flying tourbillon movement, Bvlgari has carefully lined its path to watchmaking glory with one record-breaker after another. The milestones came in quick succession: the Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater (2016) was followed by the Automatic (2017). The Italian powerhouse continued its charge with the Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Automatic (2018), the Chronograph GMT Automatic (2019), the Tourbillon Chronograph Skeleton Automatic (2020), the Perpetual Calendar (2021), the Ultra (2022), and the Ultra COSC-certified edition in titanium and platinum (2024). The decade-long run of record-breakers culminated in the Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon (2025), which reclaimed the crown as the world’s thinnest tourbillon watch.

Bvlgari’s Octo Finissimo record-breakers

Unfolding over more than a decade, it has been an incredible and relentless journey in the glaring critical eye of the watch world. But the decision to now go smaller, rather than record-breaking thin, is hardly easier. Buonamassa Stigliani has chosen his words very carefully; it just looks easier.

On paper, the new automatic models measure 37mm across, 3mm smaller than the 40mm Octo Finissimo Automatic standard bearer. They are 6.45mm thick, just a thread sturdier than their predecessor, which came in at 5.15mm thick. In watchmaking reality, however, these minuscule millimeter differences required the development of a whole new caliber, the BVF 100.

The BVF 100 offers roughly 20 percent more power reserve but is 20 percent more compact

The team realized early on that it was not a case — pardon the pun — of fitting the original Caliber BVL 138 into the new 37mm. Given that the BVL 138 measures 36.6mm in diameter, it would be like squeezing my size 10 into a size 0. Respectfully impossible.

Bvlgari had to work on a brand-new movement from the ground up, one much slimmer in girth. While the BVF 100 inherits the design philosophy of the BVL 138, Bvlgari is clear that it is a completely new development, not a scaled-down BVL 138. Only two components were carried over from the BVL 138: the platinum rotor (now further optimized) and the balance wheel. Everything else was re-engineered from the beginning.

Bulgari caliber BVL 138 is a self-winding ultra-thin movement at 2.23mm

Three years in the making, the BVF 100 is just a whisker 0.12mm thicker than its predecessor: 2.35mm versus 2.23mm. It is, however, a decidedly svelte 31mm in diameter, thereby offering a very substantial 20 percent reduction in overall volume.

Octo Finissimo 37mm Ref. 104351

“The quest for thinness is the same as the quest of miniaturization,” Jonathan Brinbaum, Managing Director of Bvlgari’s Watches Division, explains. “It’s the challenge of fitting components into the smallest surface possible without compromising on the complexity of the caliber.”

Jonathan Brinbaum, Managing Director of Bvlgari’s Watches Division

There was also the challenge of ensuring a respectable power reserve. From the get-go. Bvlgari wanted more than just a smaller Octo Finissimo for its 2026 release. Thin for thin’s sake does not answer one of the core requirements of the contemporary watch audience, Brinbaum points out, which is that of power reserve. It is one of the key priorities of the Bvlgari watch team across the diverse projects, from the Piccolissimo caliber of 2022 to last year’s Lady Solotempo Caliber BVS 100, the BVL 138 in the 40mm and now, the BVF 100 in the 37mm.

Bvlgari’s in-house automatic caliber Lady Solotempo BVS 100

“The Piccolissimo was an amazing training. Honestly, without it, we don’t have the Octo Finissimo 37 for sure,” says Buonamassa Stigliani.

“It’s the same technical quest,” Brinbaum elaborates. “Delivering the best possible power reserve, the best possible precision, within a space which is always more limited.”

As in the BVL 138, Bvlgari uses a platinum bi-directional micro-rotor for the BVF 100, recessed into the movement rather than mounted over it. The new caliber, however, offers a 72-hour power reserve, well above the 60 hours of the BVL 138. Typically, reducing the size of a movement has a negative impact on power reserve, as it implies a smaller barrel. That is not the case with the new BVF 100 caliber. Thanks to an optimized micro-rotor and the development of a redesigned barrel, the power reserve of the 40mm version has not only been preserved [in the 37mm model] but actually extended, from 60 to 72 hours.

This roughly translates into 20 percent more power reserve in a 20 percent more compact movement.

Not just the movement, the bracelet has also been given an overhaul as well, beginning with new links that are now made up of multiple components instead of singular pieces. They maintain the flowing ergonomics of earlier Octo Finissimo bracelets while improving finishing and proportions. Importantly, this allows for unprecedented versatility for two-tone and mixed-material executions that were structurally impossible with monolithic links. For instance, Bvlgari can now mix things up a little, say — steel with gold, or two tones of gold — which wasn’t possible previously. Still on the links, the very first is now fixed to the case for a smooth, uninterrupted silhouette, removing the distinct gap between case and link that can be spotted in its 40mm counterpart.

“The goal was better ergonomics and more harmonious proportions on the 37mm case,” says Buonamassa Stigliani. “The first link is fixed to the case via a screw-fastening system, and the elimination of the visible gap is part of this redesign. It addresses years of customer feedback and creates a more seamless, integrated, ‘one-piece’ visual and ergonomic read on the wrist.”

The 37mm wears comfortably on a variety of wrist sizes, including those with a prominent wrist bone

Perhaps the most obvious addition is that of new pushers on the butterfly clasp, which brings a brand-new ease of wear. “The 37mm is the result of a very long list of all the feedback and comments that we collected in the last 15 years,” Buonamassa Stigliani shares. “And it carries all the needs and all the dreams that we had.”

The new 37mm watch features pushers on the clasp, a welcome addition for many Octo Finissimo fans

Although the prototypes were ready since last year, Bvlgari postponed the announcement of the new 37mm family by a year to ensure that the watches are in store for customers at launch. Three iterations are available: in iconic sandblasted Grade 5 titanium (Ref. 104089), the material of choice for earlier members of the Octo Finissimo family; satin-polished Grade 5 titanium (Ref. 104351), which brings a striking new sheen; and satin-polished yellow gold (Ref. 104120), already a fan favorite, going by their scarcity in the market. Both titanium iterations are paired with opaline titanium dials, with black hands and indexes for the former and rhodium-plated hands and indexes for the polished model. The gold version, meanwhile, comes with matching indexes and hands, with an 18K yellow gold dial. All three references come with sapphire casebacks, showing off the new BVF 100 caliber and bearing radiating Côtes de Genève and perlage finishing.

The new BVF 100 caliber is engineered to perfectly fit the watch’s refined dimensions while delivering 72 hours of power reserve — an increase of 20 percent more power in roughly 20 percent less volume. It has been decorated by hand with radiating Côtes de Genève and perlage finishing

The Meaning of 37

Back to the Hitchhiker’s cosmic, comic galaxy where 42 is the answer to everything. The punchline is, of course, that no one knows what the question was, including Adams himself. He has famously said that he picked 42 because it was a “completely ordinary and smallish number.” Perhaps it was random — 36 or 38 sounds suitably small, no?

For Bvlgari, in contrast, there was nothing arbitrary about 37. The release of the new 37mm automatics was a decision long in the works. If you asked Buonamassa Stigliani, the seeds were planted more than 10 years ago with the very first Octo.

Octo Finissimo 37mm Ref. 104351 (satin-polished titanium) and 104120 (satin-polished yellow gold)

“When I first had in my hand the 40mm Octo Finissimo, I thought the watch was amazing, but I also thought that it was going to be too big in the next 10 years,” he shares candidly. “At that time, however, we were only able to create that kind of movement with that case size, and it was our most incredible product.”

It took time — time to build expertise and knowledge, and to properly envision the evolution of the Octo Finissimo. Buonamassa Stigliani reveals that discussion for the smaller size started five years ago and the product development took three years. In light of all that, as he points out, the 37mm automatic models have arrived at precisely the right moment in time.

“After the Piccolissimo, after the automatic movement, and after 15 years of development around the Finissimo concept, now we are able to create the 37mm,” Buonamassa Stigliani adds. “And it is the smallest Octo Finissimo that we are able to produce today with 72 hours of power reserve.”

But why 37mm?

Going from 40mm to 38mm or 39mm offers a fairly negligible difference, he explains, so these were discarded from the start. On the other hand, anything smaller than 37 would veer into the territory of women’s watches. While the Octo Finissimo 37 has received great response from the female collectors, it is primarily intended as a men’s watch, Stigliani says.

The difference 3mm makes — the new 37mm Octo Finissimo Automatic in yellow gold (left) and its counterpart in 40mm

It was also a matter of technical considerations.

“The watchmakers immediately told us to forget 36mm, if we wanted to have a screwing crown with this kind of performance in terms of power reserve,” Buonamassa Stigliani says. “Today, we don’t have the movement to have a smaller Octo Finissimo.” That conversation on even smaller movements for smaller Octo Finissimos has started, according to him, but where it ultimately goes remains to be seen.

On the surface, the new 37 automatic models bear keen resemblance to their 40mm predecessors, from the sleek metallic hour markers and faceted open-worked hands to the off-centered small seconds subdial at 7:30 and pared-back dial. But on the wrist, it wears very differently. While 40mm is hardly large as watch diameters go, even by today’s standards, the 40mm Octo Finissimo Automatic tends to wear larger because it is flat and angular. For watch lovers with a prominent wrist bone, that knobby bone that juts out, the 40mm might well sit a little lopsided. The 37mm, in contrast, wears comfortably on differently sized wrists, from 7.25 inches down to 6.5 inches, and even on more petite female ones, proving very versatile indeed.

Octo Finissimo 37mm Ref. 104089

But it is not just the smaller size of the Octo Finissimo 37 that proves compelling. The fact that it is a whisker sturdier with a 6.45mm-thick case and 0.8mm-thick dial has made all the difference. The additional 1.3mm of case thickness gives it a welcome heft, making the new watch far more tactile and solid on the wrist. The original 0.4mm dial of the 40mm had previously placed significant limits on what was possible because it was so thin — pavé and stone dials, and even finishing were ruled out. Now, imagination’s the limit.

“We will have the opportunity to play with a lot of things that we didn’t have the chance to use in the last 15 years,” Buonamassa Stigliani says.

“For us, the 37 marked the new maturity of the Octo Finissimo family,” Brinbaum adds. “After all these years, we wanted more than just a record for thinness, but truly a watch of maturity, one that brings the Finissimo to new heights as an icon in watchmaking.”

It’s Complicated

The origin story of Bvlgari’s Octo Finissimo is that of record-shattering measurements into the microscopic millimeters and of shattering preconceived notions of how thick, or more accurately, thin, a watch can be.

More than 10 years on, the story has grown in scope, richer and more nuanced, with a newfound maturity of the Octo Finissimo as a collection.

But maturity does not mean a change in vision, only an expansion of it.

“We are just at the beginning of this journey because the Octo Finissimo is just 15 years old,” Buonamassa Stigliani says. “So we don’t want to change our vision, which is simply to have the best watch possible in terms of performance with the best way to wear it.”

The original flat titanium sandblasted 40mm Octo Finissimo, resolutely square and angular, flat and ultra thin, will remain one for the record books and complications. The new 37mm, smaller and thicker, offers a welcome versatility that will see it transformed in the years ahead, with new materials and finishing.

Brinbaum echoes the sentiment. “I think it’s the time for the Octo Finissimo to be more universal.”

But really, there are no hard and fast rules when it comes to Bvlgari as Buonamassa Stigliani was quick to remind us. And one needs to look no further than the limited edition Minute Repeater that was released in tandem with the new 37mm automatic models. Housed in the new 37mm sandblasted titanium case, it bears the original Caliber BVL 362 from 2016’s record-breaking minute repeater. Measuring 28.5mm in diameter and 3.12mm thick, it was originally housed in a 40mm case measuring 6.85mm thick, making it the world’s thinnest minute repeater at launch. Fast forward 10 years later and its relatively svelte dimensions make it a perfect pitch for the new 37mm case.

“Originally, we were not expecting to launch a minute repeater in the 37mm case so quickly,” says Brinbaum. “But this is where sometimes your watchmakers just surprise you. We were able to bring the same quality of sound and efficiency of a 40mm minute repeater into a 37mm case.”

Indeed, as he points out, it was an entirely unexpected addition to the new Octo Finissimo 37 lineup, and one that hints of more possibilities and developments to the new family. Ultimately, it is also a subtle demonstration of Bvlgari’s technical dexterity built over the last 15-odd years, beginning with the inception of the Octo Finissimo concept, on to the development of the various world records, and the Piccolissimo and Solotempo movements.

This begs the next questions — will we see the 37mm with more complications?

“Why not?” Buonamassa Stigliani says. “That’s the question we always ask ourselves at Bvlgari from the very beginning.”

And indeed, why not? The sky’s the limit for Bvlgari.

Tech Specs: Octo Finissimo Automatic 37mm

References 104089 (sandblasted titanium); 104351 (satin-polished titanium); 104120 (satin-polished yellow gold)
Movement Self-winding Caliber BVF 100; 72-hour power reserve
Functions Hours, minutes and small seconds
Case 37mm × 6.45mm; sandblasted or satin-polished Grade 5 titanium, or satin-polished 18K yellow gold; water resistant to 30m
Dial Opaline titanium with black or rhodium-plated indexes and Arabic numerals (titanium versions), or 18K yellow gold with gold-plated indexes and Arabic numerals (gold version)
Strap Integrated bracelet in matching metal
Price EUR 17,700 in sandblasted titanium; EUR 18,500 in satin-polished titanium; EUR 50,700 in satin-polished yellow gold

Tech Specs: Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater 37mm

References 104250
Movement Manual winding Caliber BVL 362; 42-hour power reserve
Functions Hours, minutes and small seconds; minute repeater
Case 37mm × 6.85mm; sandblasted Grade 5 titanium; water resistant to 30m
Dial Opaline titanium with cut-out indexes and Arabic numerals
Strap Sandblasted titanium bracelet
Price EUR 195,000