--- title: "DeepResearch vs khoj" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/alibaba-nlp-deepresearch-vs-khoj-ai-khoj" tools: ["alibaba-nlp-deepresearch", "khoj-ai-khoj"] --- # DeepResearch vs khoj *GraphCanon updated Sep 20, 2026* ## Verdict Pick DeepResearch if deepResearch is an open-source AI research agent specialized for information-seeking tasks, built with Python and licensed under Apache-2.0; pick khoj if khoj is a self-hosted AI assistant that supports integration with multiple LLMs, enabling users to build custom agents and conduct deep research using both web and local documents. [DeepResearch](https://tongyi-agent.github.io/blog/introducing-tongyi-deep-research/) reports 20k GitHub stars, 1.5k forks, and 92 open issues, last pushed Feb 27, 2026. [khoj](https://khoj.dev) has 37k stars, 2.5k forks, and 150 open issues, last pushed Aug 2, 2026. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [DeepResearch's repository](https://github.com/Alibaba-NLP/DeepResearch) and [khoj's repository](https://github.com/khoj-ai/khoj). | | [DeepResearch](/tools/alibaba-nlp-deepresearch.md) | [khoj](/tools/khoj-ai-khoj.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | Tongyi Deep Research, the Leading Open-source Deep Research Agent | Self-hostable AI second brain for personalized research and automation | | Stars | 19,846 | 37,399 | | Forks | 1,510 | 2,484 | | Open issues | 92 | 150 | | Language | Python | Python | | Adopt for | DeepResearch is an open-source AI research agent specialized for information-seeking tasks, built with Python and licensed under Apache-2.0. | Khoj is a self-hosted AI assistant that supports integration with multiple LLMs, enabling users to build custom agents and conduct deep research using both web and local documents. | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | Apache-2.0 | Khoj is licensed under AGPL-3.0, which means it is free to use, modify, and distribute, but any derivative works must also be released under the same license. | | Categories | AI Agents, Inference & Serving | AI Agents, Data & Retrieval, Developer Tools, Inference & Serving, Model Training | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [DeepResearch](/tools/alibaba-nlp-deepresearch.md) | [khoj](/tools/khoj-ai-khoj.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Maintenance | Slowing (36%) | Steady (60%) | | Days since push | 172d | 47d | | Open issues (now) | 92 | 150 | | Stars delta | +161 (30d) | +887 (30d) | | Open issues delta | 0 (30d) | +17 (30d) | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/alibaba-nlp-deepresearch/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/khoj-ai-khoj/trust.md) | ## Decision facts: DeepResearch - **Adopt for:** DeepResearch is an open-source AI research agent specialized for information-seeking tasks, built with Python and licensed under Apache-2.0. ## Decision facts: khoj - **Pricing:** freemium - Khoj is free to use, but users may incur costs related to hosting and the LLMs they choose to integrate. - **Requirements:** Min 4 GB RAM; Requires Docker; Khoj requires Docker for setup and operation.; Users must have a Python environment and the necessary dependencies installed. - **Adopt for:** Khoj is a self-hosted AI assistant that supports integration with multiple LLMs, enabling users to build custom agents and conduct deep research using both web and local documents. - **License detail:** Khoj is licensed under AGPL-3.0, which means it is free to use, modify, and distribute, but any derivative works must also be released under the same license. ## Choose when ### Choose DeepResearch if… - License: DeepResearch is Apache-2.0, khoj is AGPL-3.0. - Tags unique to DeepResearch: alibaba, artificial-intelligence, deep-research, llm. - When you need a tool backed by Alibaba’s ecosystem that offers a robust environment for conducting deep research using AI techniques. ### Choose khoj if… - License: khoj is AGPL-3.0, DeepResearch is Apache-2.0. - Pricing: Khoj is free to use, but users may incur costs related to hosting and the LLMs they choose to integrate.. - Requirements: Min 4 GB RAM; Requires Docker; Khoj requires Docker for setup and operation.; Users must have a Python environment and the necessary dependencies installed.. - Tags unique to khoj: ai, assistant, chat, chatgpt. - Also covers Data & Retrieval, Developer Tools, Model Training. - khoj ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment. - When you need a self-hosted solution for personalized research and automation that can integrate with a variety of LLMs, including GPT, Claude, Gemini, LLaMA, Qwen, and Mistral. ## When NOT to use DeepResearch - Avoid DeepResearch if you require specialized features that are not covered under its deep research and information-seeking scope. - Do not use this tool if your project necessitates proprietary solutions, as the open-source nature might be a constraint in such scenarios. ## When NOT to use khoj - If you are looking for a cloud-based service without the need for self-hosting, Khoj may not be the best fit. - Khoj might not be ideal if you are seeking a tool that does not support a wide range of LLMs and requires a more specialized integration. - If your research and automation needs are simple and do not require deep integration with local documents or web sources, a more straightforward tool might be more appropriate. ## Common questions ### What is the difference between DeepResearch and khoj? DeepResearch: Tongyi Deep Research, the Leading Open-source Deep Research Agent. khoj: Self-hostable AI second brain for personalized research and automation. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose DeepResearch over khoj? Choose DeepResearch over khoj when License: DeepResearch is Apache-2.0, khoj is AGPL-3.0; Tags unique to DeepResearch: alibaba, artificial-intelligence, deep-research, llm; When you need a tool backed by Alibaba’s ecosystem that offers a robust environment for conducting deep research using AI techniques. ### When should I choose khoj over DeepResearch? Choose khoj over DeepResearch when License: khoj is AGPL-3.0, DeepResearch is Apache-2.0; Pricing: Khoj is free to use, but users may incur costs related to hosting and the LLMs they choose to integrate.; Requirements: Min 4 GB RAM; Requires Docker; Khoj requires Docker for setup and operation.; Users must have a Python environment and the necessary dependencies installed.; Tags unique to khoj: ai, assistant, chat, chatgpt; Also covers Data & Retrieval, Developer Tools, Model Training; khoj ships Docker support for self-hosted deployment; When you need a self-hosted solution for personalized research and automation that can integrate with a variety of LLMs, including GPT, Claude, Gemini, LLaMA, Qwen, and Mistral. ### When should I avoid DeepResearch? Avoid DeepResearch if you require specialized features that are not covered under its deep research and information-seeking scope. Do not use this tool if your project necessitates proprietary solutions, as the open-source nature might be a constraint in such scenarios. ### When should I avoid khoj? If you are looking for a cloud-based service without the need for self-hosting, Khoj may not be the best fit. Khoj might not be ideal if you are seeking a tool that does not support a wide range of LLMs and requires a more specialized integration. If your research and automation needs are simple and do not require deep integration with local documents or web sources, a more straightforward tool might be more appropriate. ### Is DeepResearch or khoj more popular on GitHub? khoj has more GitHub stars (37,399 vs 19,846). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are DeepResearch and khoj open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (DeepResearch: Apache-2.0, khoj: AGPL-3.0). ### Where can I find alternatives to DeepResearch or khoj? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [DeepResearch alternatives](/tools/alibaba-nlp-deepresearch/alternatives) and [khoj alternatives](/tools/khoj-ai-khoj/alternatives) ([DeepResearch markdown twin](/tools/alibaba-nlp-deepresearch/alternatives.md), [khoj markdown twin](/tools/khoj-ai-khoj/alternatives.md)), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes. ### Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison? Yes. The markdown twin at [this comparison](/compare/alibaba-nlp-deepresearch-vs-khoj-ai-khoj.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, DeepResearch or khoj? DeepResearch: Slowing. khoj: Steady. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance. ### Where are the full trust reports for DeepResearch and khoj? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [DeepResearch trust report](/tools/alibaba-nlp-deepresearch/trust); [khoj trust report](/tools/khoj-ai-khoj/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=alibaba-nlp-deepresearch`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=alibaba-nlp-deepresearch) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_