Mark Zuckerberg wears $1.2m watch to announce end of Meta fact-checking

NEW YORK – Mr Mark Zuckerberg wore a rare Swiss watch worth about US$900,000 (S$1.2 million) in a video explaining his company’s decision to end third-party fact-checking on its social media platforms in the US.

The Meta Platforms chairman sports a Greubel Forsey Hand Made 1 on his left wrist in the video posted to Facebook on Jan 7

unveiling the policy changes.

The watch is extremely rare and expensive. Greubel Forsey produces just two or three Hand Made models a year, and the watch retails for US$895,500 before taxes. 

A Meta spokesperson declined to comment. 

Mr Zuckerberg has shown a recent interest in mechanical Swiss watches, wearing a diverse selection of complicated timepieces in the past year. 

The billionaire has been spotted in the past year wearing watches made by notable brands such as Patek Philippe and F.P. Journe. 

However, the Greubel Forsey model indicates a deeper appreciation for watchmaking. Producing just a few hundred timepieces a year, the brand is not particularly well known beyond the most die-hard and well-heeled collectors.

The model Mr Zuckerberg wears in the video is made almost entirely of components constructed by Greubel Forsey. It takes hundreds of hours to assemble each watch and finish it by hand. 

Asked to comment on the Meta chairman’s latest addition to his collection, Greubel Forsey chief executive Michel Nydegger said: “It’s a pleasure to see someone who has played such a pivotal role in shaping the modern digital landscape and lifestyle show true appreciation for the most traditional approach to fine watchmaking today.”

Mr Nydegger took over as CEO of Greubel Forsey in 2024 after the company scaled back plans to significantly increase production and lower average prices from about US$500,000 a watch. BLOOMBERG