Sneakers Inspired by a Watch: Nike Air Max 1

Bulova developed the first ever electric watch of its kind through the use of Louis Breguet’s patented tuning fork timepiece, which Max Hentzel was able to miniaturize, being released as the Accutron in 1960. The watch’s inner workings were shown through a window model that gained such popularity that it was introduced as the official Accutron Spaceview one year later. This led to the conversion of existing watch dials to the movement-view design so the inner workings can be viewed. Millions of Accutron “tuning fork models” have been sold since then and continue to evolve today. 

The Accutron technology even reached space through the Accutron Astronaut that was created to meet the demands of rigorous flight and space travel. Accutron technology has been used in multiple moon missions, including the Apollo Missions and Mercury program. On earth, the Accutron Spaceview inspired the creation of the Centre Pompidou, which was created with an open, transparent design showing the building’s inner structure on its exposed exterior.

The unique design of the Accutron Spaceview eventually caught the eye of Tinker Hartfield, who created the greatest sneakers in history: the Nike Air Max 1. Hartfield created the transparent ar bubble element of the shoe in a way that showed the inner workings of the shoe through a directly visible “window” in a similar design to the Accutron Spaceview. The attractive design and functionality of the shoes resonated with the sneaker community and ultimately gave rise to culturally relevant norms within the sneaker community for generations. Through the Air Max 1, Accutron’s technology continues to inspire designs of our future.