+edit: you also usually get an extra second or two ( depending on the total time ) per move.
I think any decently skilled (but non-world-class) chess player could have run him down just by playing defensively. Of course, that would have been terrible tv, so we got someone who probably only plays casually getting steam-rolled by the "Justin Bieber of chess".
'The Mozart of chess' is the general consensus. The 'Justin Beiber of chess' is rather insulting.
2nd paragraph under the video:
""Wow, that was fast," he said to Carlsen, whose rockstar appeal has won him the moniker the "Justin Bieber of chess.""
I also used to play against some amateur chess players with 30 seconds on my clock and 5 minutes on theirs. I routinely crushed them.
Even with 30 seconds, a significantly better player will still almost always win.