Mark Zuckerberg’s $99,000 purple watch gets its distinct color from heat-treating titanium

Mark Zuckerberg added a splash of color to his multimillion-dollar watch collection earlier this summer.

The Meta CEO was seen sporting an eye-catching purple watch in June in an Instagram post announcing Oakley Meta glasses.

A closer look shows it’s the DB28xs Purple Rain from Swiss watchmaker De Bethune.

When it was released in 2024, the watch, a limited edition of 25, was priced at $99,000.

On the resale market, it can fetch $100,000 to $120,000, depending on condition, Eugene Tutunikov, CEO of SwissWatchExpo, told Business Insider.

Joshua Ganjei, CEO of European Watch Company, said this De Bethune isn’t your typical luxury piece.

“It’s not a mainstream flex—it’s a connoisseur’s statement,” Ganjei told Business Insider. “Seeing someone like Zuck embrace such a niche, design-forward piece speaks volumes about his evolving taste and the growing influence of independent haute horology.”

The science behind the watch’s color is fascinating: It’s made using the thermal oxidation of titanium metal, getting its striking purple shade from the heat released by the chemical reactions of heated titanium.

This isn’t the first time Zuckerberg has been seen sporting a piece from the high-end watchmaker. He wore a DB25 Starry Varius while speaking at a live taping of the “Acquired” podcast in San Francisco in September.

Zuckerberg’s interest in watches appears to stem from an interaction he and his wife, Priscilla Chan, shared with Anant Ambani at Ambani’s pre-wedding party in March 2024. Photos showed Zuckerberg and Chan admiring a Richard Mille watch worn by the Reliance Industries heir.

“You know, I never really wanted to get a watch, but after seeing that, I was like, watches are cool,” Zuckerberg can be heard saying in a video of the interaction.

Zuckerberg’s watch collection includes everything from a $120 Casio to a $900,000 Greubel Forsey. He’s also been seen wearing pieces from Rolex, Patek Philippe, and F.P. Journe.

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