How long was the first video on YouTube?

The first video on YouTube, "Me at the zoo," is 18 seconds long. The video features Jawed Karim, one of YouTube's co-founders, standing in front of an elephant enclosure at the San Diego Zoo, talking about the elephants' long trunks and their ability to pick up things with their trunks.

The short duration of the first YouTube video reflects the platform's early focus on sharing quick, unedited moments and experiences in a simple, straightforward way. The brevity of the video also highlights the spontaneous, user-generated style of the first YouTube videos, which were often filmed and uploaded with minimal planning or preparation.

Over time, as content creators have sought to produce more polished and professional videos, the duration of videos on YouTube has become more varied, with some videos lasting just a few seconds and others lasting for hours or even days. However, the first video on YouTube remains a testament to the platform's original purpose and the accessible, user-generated content that helped it gain popularity.

The first video uploaded to YouTube, titled "Me at the zoo," had a duration of just 18 seconds. Despite its brevity, it holds historical significance as the very first video ever uploaded to the platform.