Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Keras VS Deeplearning4j

Compare Keras VS Deeplearning4j and see what are their differences

Keras logo Keras

Keras is a minimalist, modular neural networks library, written in Python and capable of running on top of either TensorFlow or Theano.

Deeplearning4j logo Deeplearning4j

Deeplearning4j is an open-source, distributed deep-learning library written for Java and Scala.
  • Keras Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-16
  • Deeplearning4j Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-16

Keras features and specs

  • User-Friendly
    Keras provides a simple and intuitive interface, making it easy for beginners to start building and training models without needing extensive experience in deep learning.
  • Modularity
    Keras follows a modular design, allowing users to easily plug in different neural network components, such as layers, activation functions, and optimizers, to create complex models.
  • Pre-trained Models
    Keras includes a wide range of pre-trained models and offers easy integration with transfer learning techniques, reducing the time required to achieve good results on new tasks.
  • Integration with TensorFlow
    As part of TensorFlow’s ecosystem, Keras provides deep integration with TensorFlow functionalities, enabling users to leverage TensorFlow's powerful features and performance optimizations.
  • Extensive Documentation
    Keras has comprehensive and well-organized documentation, along with numerous tutorials and code examples, making it easier for developers to learn and use the framework.
  • Community Support
    Keras benefits from a large and active community, which provides support through forums, GitHub, and specialized user groups, facilitating the resolution of issues and sharing of best practices.

Possible disadvantages of Keras

  • Performance Limitations
    Due to its high-level abstraction, Keras may incur performance overheads, making it less suitable for scenarios requiring extremely fast execution and low-level optimizations.
  • Limited Low-Level Control
    The simplicity and abstraction of Keras can be a downside for advanced users who need fine-grained control over model components and custom operations, which may require them to resort to lower-level frameworks.
  • Scalability Issues
    In some complex applications and large-scale deployments, Keras might face scalability challenges, where more specialized or low-level frameworks could handle such tasks more efficiently.
  • Dependency on TensorFlow
    While the integration with TensorFlow is generally an advantage, it also means that the performance and features of Keras are closely tied to the development and updates of TensorFlow.
  • Lagging Behind Latest Research
    Keras, being a user-friendly high-level API, might not always incorporate the latest cutting-edge research advancements in deep learning as quickly as more research-oriented frameworks.

Deeplearning4j features and specs

  • Java Integration
    Deeplearning4j is written for Java, making it easy to integrate with existing Java applications. This is a significant advantage for businesses running Java systems.
  • Scalability
    It is designed for scalability and can be used in distributed environments. This is ideal for handling large-scale datasets and heavy computational tasks.
  • Commercial Support
    Deeplearning4j offers professional support through commercial entities, which can be beneficial for enterprises needing reliable assistance and maintenance.
  • Compatibility with Hardware
    It provides compatibility with GPUs and various processing environments, allowing efficient training of deep networks.
  • Ecosystem
    Deeplearning4j is part of a larger ecosystem, including tools like DataVec for data preprocessing and ND4J for numerical computing, providing a comprehensive suite for machine learning tasks.

Possible disadvantages of Deeplearning4j

  • Learning Curve
    It can have a steep learning curve, especially for developers not already familiar with the Java programming language or deep learning concepts.
  • Community Size
    The community and available resources are not as extensive as those for other deep learning libraries like TensorFlow or PyTorch. This might limit access to free and diverse community support.
  • Less Popularity
    Compared to more popular frameworks like TensorFlow or PyTorch, Deeplearning4j is less commonly used, which may affect library updates and third-party tool integrations.
  • Performance
    In some use cases, performance can lag behind other optimized frameworks that extensively use C++ and CUDA, particularly for specific models or complex operations.

Keras videos

3. Deep Learning Tutorial (Tensorflow2.0, Keras & Python) - Movie Review Classification

More videos:

  • Review - Movie Review Classifier in Keras | Deep Learning | Binary Classifier
  • Review - EKOR KERAS!! Review and Bike Check DARTMOOR HORNET 2018 // MTB Indonesia

Deeplearning4j videos

Deep Learning with DeepLearning4J and Spring Boot - Artur Garcia & Dimas Cabré @ Spring I/O 2017

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Keras and Deeplearning4j)
Data Science And Machine Learning
Data Science Tools
88 88%
12% 12
Machine Learning
73 73%
27% 27
OCR
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Keras and Deeplearning4j

Keras Reviews

10 Python Libraries for Computer Vision
TensorFlow and Keras are widely used libraries for machine learning, but they also offer excellent support for computer vision tasks. TensorFlow provides pre-trained models like Inception and ResNet for image classification, while Keras simplifies the process of building, training, and evaluating deep learning models.
Source: clouddevs.com
25 Python Frameworks to Master
Keras is a high-level deep-learning framework capable of running on top of TensorFlow, Theano, and CNTK. It was developed by François Chollet in 2015 and is designed to provide a simple and user-friendly interface for building and training deep learning models.
Source: kinsta.com
15 data science tools to consider using in 2021
Keras is a programming interface that enables data scientists to more easily access and use the TensorFlow machine learning platform. It's an open source deep learning API and framework written in Python that runs on top of TensorFlow and is now integrated into that platform. Keras previously supported multiple back ends but was tied exclusively to TensorFlow starting with...

Deeplearning4j Reviews

We have no reviews of Deeplearning4j yet.
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Keras should be more popular than Deeplearning4j. It has been mentiond 35 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Keras mentions (35)

  • Top Programming Languages for AI Development in 2025
    The unchallenged leader in AI development is still Python. And Keras, and robust community support. - Source: dev.to / 3 days ago
  • Top 8 OpenSource Tools for AI Startups
    If you need simplicity, Keras is a great high-level API built on top of TensorFlow. It lets you quickly prototype neural networks without worrying about low-level implementations. Keras is perfect for getting those first models up and running—an essential part of the startup hustle. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
  • Top 5 Production-Ready Open Source AI Libraries for Engineering Teams
    At its heart is TensorFlow Core, which provides low-level APIs for building custom models and performing computations using tensors (multi-dimensional arrays). It has a high-level API, Keras, which simplifies the process of building machine learning models. It also has a large community, where you can share ideas, contribute, and get help if you are stuck. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • Using Google Magika to build an AI-powered file type detector
    The core model architecture for Magika was implemented using Keras, a popular open source deep learning framework that enables Google researchers to experiment quickly with new models. - Source: dev.to / 11 months ago
  • My Favorite DevTools to Build AI/ML Applications!
    As a beginner, I was looking for something simple and flexible for developing deep learning models and that is when I found Keras. Many AI/ML professionals appreciate Keras for its simplicity and efficiency in prototyping and developing deep learning models, making it a preferred choice, especially for beginners and for projects requiring rapid development. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
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Deeplearning4j mentions (5)

  • DeepLearning4j Blockchain Integration: Merging AI and Blockchain for a Transparent Future
    DeepLearning4j Blockchain Integration is more than just a convergence of technologies; it’s a paradigm shift in how AI projects are developed, funded, and maintained. By utilizing the robust framework of DL4J, enhanced with secure blockchain features and an inclusive open source model, the project is not only pushing the boundaries for artificial intelligence but also establishing a resilient model for future... - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • Machine Learning in Kotlin (Question)
    While KotlinDL seems to be a good solution by Jetbrains, I would personally stick to Java frameworks like DL4J for a better community support and likely more features. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Does Java has similar project like this one in C#? (ml, data)
    Would recommend taking a look at dl4j: https://deeplearning4j.org. Source: almost 4 years ago
  • just released my Clojure AI book
    We use DeepLearning4j in this chapter because it is written in Java and easy to use with Clojure. In a later chapter we will use the Clojure library libpython-clj to access other deep learning-based tools like the Hugging Face Transformer models for question answering systems as well as the spaCy Python library for NLP. Source: almost 4 years ago
  • [D] What’s the simplest, most lightweight but complete and 100% open source MLOps toolkit? -> MY OWN CONCLUSIONS
    FastAPI. Or even simpler: DL4J, to be used in Java when we need to communicate with the rest of the applications in real time. Source: about 4 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Keras and Deeplearning4j, you can also consider the following products

TensorFlow - TensorFlow is an open-source machine learning framework designed and published by Google. It tracks data flow graphs over time. Nodes in the data flow graphs represent machine learning algorithms. Read more about TensorFlow.

PyTorch - Open source deep learning platform that provides a seamless path from research prototyping to...

Scikit-learn - scikit-learn (formerly scikits.learn) is an open source machine learning library for the Python programming language.

TFlearn - TFlearn is a modular and transparent deep learning library built on top of Tensorflow.

OpenCV - OpenCV is the world's biggest computer vision library

DeepPy - DeepPy is a MIT licensed deep learning framework that tries to add a touch of zen to deep learning as it allows for Pythonic programming.