In 1998, Rabbi Yaacov Deyo walked into Pete's Café in Beverly Hills with an unconventional solution to an age-old problem: how do you help busy professionals find love without wasting months on dead-end dates?

His answer was SpeedDating—a trademarked event format where singles rotate through a series of mini-dates, each lasting just seven minutes. When the bell rings, you move on. At the end of the night, you mark down who you'd like to see again. Mutual matches get each other's contact info.

Why Seven Minutes?

Deyo didn't pick the number randomly. Drawing on Jewish wisdom about decision-making, he believed seven minutes was enough time to sense chemistry without getting trapped in an awkward conversation. Long enough to be meaningful, short enough to stay interesting.

The format also solved a practical problem in the Orthodox Jewish community: traditional matchmaking (shidduchim) was slow and limited by who your family knew. Speed dating democratized the process.

From Beverly Hills to the World

The first events were exclusively for Jewish singles, hosted by Deyo's organization Aish HaTorah. But the concept was too good to stay niche. Within two years, secular versions had spread across the United States, Europe, and Australia.

By the early 2000s, speed dating had become:

A staple of romantic comedies and sitcom plots
A format adapted for business networking
An inspiration for dating app features like timed matches

The Business of Quick Connection

Deyo trademarked "SpeedDating" (one word, capital D), but the generic concept exploded beyond his control. Event companies, bars, and community centers all started hosting their own versions. Some specialized—speed dating for dog lovers, for vegans, for seniors, for tech workers.

The irony isn't lost on anyone: a Rabbi trying to help his community build lasting marriages accidentally created a format that's now synonymous with rapid-fire romance.

Does It Actually Work?

Research says yes—sort of. Studies show people make surprisingly accurate judgments about compatibility in just a few minutes. A Columbia University study found that speed daters could predict long-term interest with reasonable accuracy.

The bigger win might be efficiency. Instead of spending three months messaging someone online only to discover zero chemistry in person, you find out in seven minutes. Rabbi Deyo would approve of not wasting anyone's time.

Twenty-five years later, his Beverly Hills experiment has helped millions of people meet. Some found love. Some found funny stories. Either way, they only lost seven minutes finding out.

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