2026's weirdest tech leak involves scuba diving, a Caribbean island, and Gearbox head honcho Randy Pitchford, and no, it's not what you expect

Games and tech products can leak in all manner of strange ways. But the curious case of the Pixel Watch 5 is by far the weirdest I've heard about. The accidental unveiling of what appears to be Google's next smartwatch involves scuba diving, Caribbean idylls, and Gearbox CEO/walking headline generator Randy Pitchford.

For once, Pitchford isn't the main character of the story. Instead, he's the narrator. Earlier this week, Pitchford posted on X that "a friend" of his had inadvertently stumbled upon what appears to be a Pixel Watch 5, which Google has yet to announce. The twist? The watch was underwater when it was found by Pitchford's pal, who was scuba diving at the time.

"A friend of mine found this watch a few days ago underwater when he was scuba diving near the island of St. Martin," Pitchford wrote. "He noted that the reverse of the watch indicates that it is a Google Pixel 5, which has not yet been released."

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Continuing, Pitchford wrote that the watch "seems to be fine" aside from having an empty battery, and that he was sharing the information because his friend "seems to believe I am connected in the tech industry." The post also includes images of both the front and reverse of the watch, which does appear to have "Google Pixel Watch 5" written around the underside.

I hope it doesn't need to be pointed out that finding an unannounced smartwatch in the ocean off a Caribbean island is an extremely unlikely event. Inevitably, some people have accused Pitchford of making the whole thing up. But if he is, it's a pretty elaborate prank.

As noted by GSMArena (via Kotaku), the image of the watch reveals numerous specs consistent with a Pixel Watch, such as IP68 ingress protection, a heart rate sensor, UWB chip, pulse sensor, spO2 and skin temperature tracking.

My instinct is that the watch is real and that whoever dropped it was either a Google employee on vacation or someone testing out the water-resistant capabilities of the watch. Why you'd fly all the way out to Saint Martin to do that is a mystery to me, but Google isn't exactly short on funds to do so.

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Pitchford followed up his initial post with an update saying he is "now in touch with the owner" and he and his friend have "arranged for its return." He signs off by saying "If you find something that isn't yours, pay it forward and try to return it to its rightful owner." Thanks for the advice, Randy!