MrBeasts fast-cutting, non-stop dramatics are already quick enough. Now, some users can watch his videos (and more) at 4x speed.YouTube is continuing their push for pace. In a new experiment, Premium users will be able to quadruple the speed of their videos. Thats up from YouTubes previous ceiling of double speed. Meanwhile, TikTok users can up the tempo with a simple push-and-hold. And on Spotify, which is pushing to become video platform with their drive towards filmed podcasts, the speed cap is 3.5x.Ever since TikTok gained dominance, social media companies have worked quickly to shorten their video offerings. Meta and X pumped out TikTok clones for their seconds-long clips. YouTubes iteration even has length in the title: Shorts. But YouTubes 4x speed play could signal a new frontier for social video. Our feeds are getting snappier, both in length and pace.Social videos push for speedBy signing up for YouTubes new features, these paid users can now boost their videos to 4x speed, up from a previous cap of 2x. The average MrBeast video is around 30 minutes. Now, imagine being able to watch that content in a mere 7 minutes and 30 seconds. Of course, the audio would be almost incomprehensible. But YouTube still wants to let you try it.Its not YouTubes first foray into speed changes. In 2023, they started letting users press-and-hold on the right side of their screen to immediately hit double speed. The feature was then just for Premium users; now, its available for the masses. Playback speeds were once relegated to increments of 25% (1.25, 1.5, 1.75, and on), but the company introduced a dial for greater granularity in October. Now users can control the pace down to 5% changes, just in case they were craving Dude Perfect specifically at 1.65x speed.YouTubes press-and-hold model mimics that of TikTok, another company thats been toying with playback speeds. One press against the top right side of the screenaround where many mobile users fingers land naturallywill send the TikTok into double time. They also have more granular speed options available in the video settings.For far longer, the audio industry has had speed changes available for its listeners. Audiobook enthusiasts can hear their novels at almost any speed, across their many platforms. Spotify offers the same feature for their podcasts, with a current cap of 3.5x speed. But now Spotify wants to compete with YouTube. Theyre pushing podcasters to film their episodes, turning these pre-existing speed tools into video accelerators.Is quick-paced media good for us?While cranking a videos speed to 4x may make it end quicker, theres still debate about whether its an effective way to consume content. The pace demands that viewers skim-watch their videos, not collecting the same level of detail. But does that matter for, say, a YouTube beauty tutorial?Most research shows that theres a cap on understanding sped-up video. In 2021, UCLA psychology researcher Dillon H. Murphy led a study on students watching lectures at a quickened pace. The students maintained almost the same level of learning up to 2x speedbut performance declined beyond that. Murphy then repeated the study in 2024, finding that the drop-off point had ascended to 2.5x speed.So no, youre not processing all the information in that YouTube video essay set to 4x speed. But, at the still-quick 2.5x speed, you might be able to. If youre a Premium user, thats now an option.