At the risk of sounding cheezy (and in a very nerdy way no less), Piefed feels like the future. Best principles of what made the internet good back in the day, with a modern approach. And all of it done on enthusiasm, DIY contributions and some modest donations.
Side note, one way to make YT work better, is to simply make a bookmark folder linking to the video pages (sorted by new) of the channels you watch. Even the search in YT is godawful and clearly design for "engagement" instead of finding what you are looking for.