To add and reiterate what others have said:

• It’s similar to following sports and knowing all the game results, who’s injured/out for the season, etc.
• People like to feel part of larger society/culture, and to feel knowledgeable, to feel “in on things”
• It’s a way to fill time/fill the void, a distraction from “real life” which can leave you feeling powerless/drained
• It can be a good conversation topic with friends when there’s not much to talk about (or when other topics can be contentious)

Some ways to try to revert it (some have already been mentioned)

👉 Go to this page and check if you’re able to opt out of the “Redesigned Watch Page” (source)

👉 Install a userscript addon like Violentmonkey, and then use a script like Classic Youtube Layout (which is based on this script which was outdated in regards to the related videos sidebar)

• If you get an error about the @match line of the script then click on allow edits and change it from *.youtube.com/* to *://*.youtube.com/*, or install the script as it is and then put *://*.youtube.com/* in the “@match rules” line in the settings tab of the script
• There’s also this script that you would need to add its code manually to the userscript addon by clicking on the new script icon (see the author’s post for more details)

👉 Use uBlock Origin filters like these or these

• Note that youtube.com##+js(set, yt.config_.EXPERIMENT_FLAGS.kevlar_watch_grid, false) should be enough to change the UI back for the most part

👉 Use this userscript and Stylus style

👉 The addon Enhancer for YouTube (Firefox / Chrome) also reverts the UI, at least partially

👉 (might only work some times) Use the addon CustomTube - Firefox / Chrome (the default UI is from 2017 but you can choose 2021 in the settings. It’s not exactly like the one from 2023 but it’s close enough)

• note that it removes some buttons like Join by default so go over the settings if relevant

If you also want to change the number of videos per row in the subscription page and channels’ videos page, then you can add this uBlock Origin code to the “My filters” tab (at the end click “Apply changes”, or Ctrl+S) (this is for 6 items per row but you can change the number in the first 2 line as needed) (source 1 / source 2)

youtube.com##ytd-rich-grid-renderer:style(--ytd-rich-grid-items-per-row: 6 !important;)
youtube.com##ytd-rich-grid-renderer:style(--ytd-rich-grid-posts-per-row: 6 !important;)
youtube.com##ytd-two-column-browse-results-renderer.grid-6-columns:style(width: 100% !important;)
youtube.com##ytd-rich-grid-row, #contents.ytd-rich-grid-row:style(display:contents !important;)
youtube.com##ytd-two-column-browse-results-renderer.grid:not(.grid-disabled):style(max-width: 100% !important;)

Sorry, it was unclear in my comment. By “it’s actually part of the Mozilla Corporation” I was referring to Firefox, not Mozilla Foundation

for anybody that wants to disable it, go to the settings and search for “Allow websites to perform privacy-preserving ad measurement”

(or through the dom.private-attribution.submission.enabled flag in about:config)

https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/privacy-preserving-attribution

Just adding that as I understand this, donations to the Mozilla Foundation cannot go towards Firefox, because it’s [edit: Firefox is] actually part of the Mozilla Corporation. To help with funding Firefox people can consider purchasing the Corporation’s other products (VPN/Relay/Monitor), or purchasing merch.

See more here on the AMA on Reddit, and this thread

• Lights: Switching to light sources/bulbs with lower brightness/warmer light temperature (lower Kelvin/K-value) 3 hours before bed. (Light affects our sleep-wake cycle, aka the circadian rhythm. Our brain processes bright light as “the sun is still up so it’s not time to sleep yet”)
• Screens: Gradually dimming electronic screens until bedtime (Computer: using F.lux and lowering the brightness gradually in the graphics card’s control panel. Phone: with a built-in Night/Dark Mode option that you can schedule or by using an app like Twilight). // Don’t take your devices to the bedroom, or keep them far away from the bed and set them on silent/shut them off.
• Try not to sleep for more than 8 hours so you’ll need the sleep the next night.
• Sleeping in a closed and completely dark room (including covering LED lights on electronics, or using a face mask) with something that makes a white noise (fan/air purifier/etc.)
• Food: Having a light meal 3-3.5 hours before bed and light snacks 1.5-2 hours before bed, to not put the body into overdrive digesting a heavy meal or cause heartburn/indigestion, and also to not go to sleep hungry and get distracted by that.
• If you sleep on your stomach with your head to the side, you can use a thin and narrow side pillow (but firm) along your torso to support your shoulder on the side that your head is pointing to. (you can also use a thin pillow for your head to not strain your neck/spine - there are ones made for kids if needed)