For anyone interested there're a few such tools that are modern alternatives to traditional Unix utilities. Interestingly all written in Rust.
grep -> ripgrep (command `rg`)
find -> fd
sed -> sd
diff -> delta
ls -> exa && lsd
cat -> bat
wc -> cw
du -> dust
ps -> procs
top -> ytop (**edit** archived; author recommends `bottom`)
They all offer their own modern take but I'll say the first two, which are the only ones I'm using, are the most interesting. Both ripgrep and fd offer easier usage. The ripgrep is also an ack replacement and fd can also replace parallel (even has compatible syntax). The amazing part is that both are an order of magnitude faster their counterparts. The ripgrep dev has extended analysis for how this is achieved on their blog[0].
[0]: https://blog.burntsushi.net/ripgrep/