The Pixel Watch 5 may have been spoiled by… the creator of Borderlands
Randy Pitchford says his friend found a ‘Pixel 5’ watch while scuba diving.
by Emma Roth
Jun 1, 2026, 4:59 PM EDT
Screenshot: Randy Pitchford via X
We may just have gotten an early look at the Pixel Watch 5 — and from an unusual source. Randy Pitchford, the creator of the Borderlands game franchise, posted a pair of images of a watch on X, saying that his friend found it underwater, while scuba diving near Saint Martin, as reported earlier by Kotaku.
“He noted that the reverse of the watch indicates that it is a Google Pixel 5, which has not yet been announced, let alone released,” Pitchford writes. “It seems to be fine. The face indicates an empty battery, but seems to have enough reserve power to display the correct time.” After putting out a call to find its owner, Pitchford said someone contacted him and that he’s “arranged for its return.” Google didn’t immediately respond to The Verge’s request for comment.
Details about the upcoming Pixel watch are still slim, though previous rumors suggested that it could come with Google’s in-house Tensor processor. The whole ordeal is reminiscent of the leak of the very first Pixel Watch in 2022. At the time, someone posted images of the unannounced device on Reddit, claiming that their bartender friend found it at the restaurant where they work. (We can’t leave out the iPhone 4 leak from 2010 either.)
Google typically shows off its newest Pixel devices in August. That means we’ll find out if someone really dropped a not-yet-revealed Pixel Watch 5 into the ocean in just a few short months.
