Hublot e-Warranty on its Digitalization

In 2009, Hublot was the first company to equip its watches with electronic warranties. It’s called the Hublot e-warranty. The company will use an electronic passport and warranty system, like facial recognition, with a unique take on its materials to sell its watches.

This advanced technology was the result of collaboration with KerQuest over the course of more than three years. Thanks to Hublot’s e-warranty, you can now activate the warranty and access it by simply taking a photo with your mobile phone, to certify the authenticity of the item.

Although the technology developed relies on complex algorithms, it is simple and easy to implement. Gone are the days of warranty cards and authenticity certificates; Hublot’s new e-warranty protection and warranty system emphasises the tracking and tracing of its watches, from their manufacture through to customers, via watch dealers.

Maintaining its motto “Be first,” the watchmaker has created a unique and technological first, in which the watch itself becomes the key to open up a new world of services. Hublot is making everyday use of their watches easier for customers. Simple, easy, and effective!

The watchmaker has been collaborating since 2017 in the development of algorithms with the company KerQuest. The goal involved the creation of technology that relied on the very distinction of the watch, which is its microstructure. While a material in the broadest sense had been studied for months already, the actual unitary recognition of it was what has been conskdered problematic until now.

With the evolution of smartphones and particularly the development of camera hardware, as well as that of artificial intelligence, Hublot and KerQuest have perfected the world’s first ever visual recognition of a watch.

All Hublot watches are unique: with even two watches of the same model leaving the factory, they are distinguishable due to the singularities of their microstructure. The challenge that the company used to face was accessing and processing the data in a reliable and practical way. The Hublot warranty is based on a new approach that is unique to each Hublot watch and model.

Technological innovations are at rhe heart of watch-making, where, in a way, the watch’s identity is determined. Optical readers specially constructed to capture and interpret the reality of each piece in full detail, and in high definition. All watches are photographed as they leave the production line.

The Hublot-e-warranty app is used by the point of sale to enter warranty information for watches sold in boutiques (it takes a photo of the head of the watch lined up with a duplicate displayed on the screen). The photo gets transferred to the computational infrastructure where it is examined and the warranty automatically activated if the unit has been correctly identified.

Once the watch has been recognized and authenticated, the client receives an e-warranty via the channel of their choice, and will be able to easily get in touch with other Hublot enthusiasts.

Hublot also offers a customer-focused e-warranty application so that they can have quick access to Hublot’s new services. Customers are able to check authenticity, verify warranty status, and access the Hublotista community.

Even if a customer were to lose the warranty data or if the manufacturer does not transfer the warranty to the new owner, the shared visibility of the watch with the Hublot e-Warranty app, available on the Google Play Store and Apple App, retains the information about the watch as well as its warranty. The Hublot e-warranty system powers a service that protects both people buying and selling used watches online.

Since the start of 2020, all pieces fabricated at the manufacturer are compatible with Hublot’s e-warranty technology. Hublot has rolled out technology that is fully functional at all of its point-of-sale locations.

Hublot puts the customer experience at the heart of its development and intends to leverage this technology to offer new interactive features to its loyal customers.