TAG Heuer Built A Hypercar-Inspired Watch That Costs As Much As A Supercar

Built with aerospace-grade titanium, the Monaco Air 1 is among the most advanced watches TAG Heuer has ever produced

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This is the TAG Heuer Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph Air 1, a premium watch that, despite lacking any official tie to a carmaker, is said to draw its muse from the world of contemporary hypercars. TAG Heuer insists there’s a link, though you’d need a generous imagination to spot it.

Also: TAG Heuer Teams Up With Nintendo For Mario Kart Watches Priced From $4K To $26K

To our eyes, the similarities are subtle at best, but it’s hard to deny that the new timepiece is striking. What’s not subtle is its price at 150,000 Swiss Francs, or around $124,000. The Air 1 is undeniably expensive, even if it stands among the most technically ambitious Monaco models ever created.

Titanium, Lasers, and a Little Bit of Madness

The chronograph features a lightweight Grade 5 titanium case formed through Selective Laser Melting, an additive manufacturing process commonly used in aerospace and automotive applications and comparable in principle to 3D printing.

The process allows TAG Heuer’s engineers to sculpt the watch as if it were hollowed from within, achieving a weight of just 86 grams (3 ounces). That’s pretty light for a timepiece with a 41 mm case, a rather chunky 15.2 mm profile, and a lug-to-lug span of 47.9 mm.

As one might expect from its complex multi-piece construction, the Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph Air 1 offers limited water resistance. TAG Heuer rates it at just 30 meters, which in real life translates to little more than splash or hand-washing protection.

You’d be wise to keep it away from pools or even showers, as those ratings are based on static pressure rather than the dynamic forces encountered during actual movement in water.

Inside the Machine

Within the sculpted titanium shell beats TAG Heuer’s Calibre TH81-00 split-seconds chronograph, first revealed in the 2023 Only Watch edition before entering the standard range the following year.

In performance terms, the TH81-00 maintains its previous credentials with a 36,000 bph frequency and a 65-hour power reserve. Even with the chronograph running often, reserve time remains a respectable 55 hours.

The caseback has an intriguing exoskeleton and honeycomb-motif mesh that draws on inspiration from the engine covers of various hypercars. There are also touches of 2N yellow gold, a sapphire dial, and black sapphire crystals in the face.

TAG Heuer describes the Air 1 as “one of the most technologically advanced watches” it has ever produced, a claim that goes some way toward explaining its considerable price.

The square dial, a defining hallmark of the Monaco range, is still present here, though interpreted through a distinctly futuristic lens.

“The TAG Heuer Monaco Split-Seconds Chronograph Air 1 is a watchmaking revolution,” TAG Heuer chief executive Antoine Pin said. “Think of it this way: thanks to SLM, a watch engineer has been able to deliver a watch designer’s wildest creation. The SLM manufacturing process, adapted by the TAG Heuer LAB, takes us into a new dimension, rewriting the received laws of case design.”

For as special as the chronograph may be, very few people will ever have the opportunity to own one, as only 30 examples will be produced.