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HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) vs Kinetica

HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB): GPU-native columnar SQL database with visual analytics, fully open-sourced by NVIDIA in 2026. Kinetica: GPU- and vector-accelerated database for real-time spatial, time-series and vector analytics.

key differences

  • Licensing: HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) is open source (permissive) (Apache License 2.0); Kinetica is proprietary (Proprietary (free Developer Edition)).
  • Kinetica is built for larger datasets (≤ 1 PB) than HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) (≤ 10 TB).
  • Only Kinetica has secondary indexes, vector search, json, materialized views, ttl / expiry.

choose heavydb for

  • +Geospatial visual analytics
  • +Telecom and RF network planning
  • +Interactive exploration of large telemetry datasets

best at · OLAP, Geo, Real-time analytics

choose kinetica for

  • +Real-time fleet and vehicle telemetry
  • +Telecom network analytics
  • +Defense and geospatial intelligence
  • +Fraud detection with vector similarity

best at · Real-time analytics, Geo, Time-series

HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB)GPU-native columnar SQL database with visual analytics, fully open-sourced by NVIDIA in 2026.
KineticaGPU- and vector-accelerated database for real-time spatial, time-series and vector analytics.
overview
Primary model
Columnar / OLAP
Columnar / OLAP
Also supports
Relational, Spatial
Relational, Spatial, Time-Series, Vector, Graph
Type
Database engine
Database engine
Status
Active
Active
Developer
NVIDIA (HEAVY.AI)
Kinetica DB Inc.
First release
2017
2016
Latest version
10.0.0 (Oct 8, 2026)
–
License
Open source (permissive)Apache License 2.0
ProprietaryProprietary (free Developer Edition)
Free tier
✓
✓
popularity
WhichDB Score
14.3
6.4
Rank
#234
#361
GitHub stars
3.1K
–
Stack Overflow questions
–
–
scale & guarantees
Comfortable data size
Medium (≤ 10 TB)
Large (≤ 1 PB)
Horizontal scaling
Native
Native
Multi-region
None
None
ACID
Limited
Limited
Consistency
Strong
Eventual
Schema
Strict
Strict
Architecture
Single node, Distributed, In memory
Distributed, In memory
deployment
Self-hosted
✓
✓
Vendor-managed cloud
—
✓
Serverless
—
—
Embedded
—
—
Edge
—
—
Clouds
–
AWS, Azure
capabilities
Transactions
—
—
Joins
✓
✓
Secondary indexes
—
✓
Full-text search
—
—
Vector search
—
✓
Geospatial
✓
✓
JSON
—
✓
Change data capture
—
—
Triggers
—
—
Stored procedures
—
—
Materialized views
—
✓
TTL / expiry
—
✓
Pub/Sub
—
—
Columnar storage
✓
✓
In-memory
✓
✓
Durable persistence
✓
✓
Compression
✓
✓
Encryption at rest
—
✓
Role-based access
✓
✓
Time travel
—
—
Branching
—
—
Online schema changes
—
—
Streaming ingest
—
✓
Offline sync
—
—
Runs in WebAssembly
—
—
interfaces
Query languages
SQL
SQL (PostgreSQL-flavoured)
Client languages
Python, Java, JavaScript, C++
Python, Java, JavaScript, C++, C#
Best for
OLAP, Geo, Real-time analytics
Real-time analytics, Geo, Time-series, Vector search
Add more to this comparisonNot sure either fits? Try smart match

HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) vs Kinetica: FAQ

What is the difference between HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) and Kinetica?

HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB): GPU-native columnar SQL database with visual analytics, fully open-sourced by NVIDIA in 2026. Kinetica: GPU- and vector-accelerated database for real-time spatial, time-series and vector analytics. Licensing: HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) is open source (permissive) (Apache License 2.0); Kinetica is proprietary (Proprietary (free Developer Edition)). Kinetica is built for larger datasets (≤ 1 PB) than HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) (≤ 10 TB). Only Kinetica has secondary indexes, vector search, json, materialized views, ttl / expiry.

When should I choose HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) over Kinetica?

Choose HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) for geospatial visual analytics; telecom and RF network planning; and interactive exploration of large telemetry datasets. Choose Kinetica for real-time fleet and vehicle telemetry; telecom network analytics; and defense and geospatial intelligence.

Is HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) or Kinetica more popular?

HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) ranks #234 on the WhichDB Score (14.3/100) and Kinetica ranks #361 (6.4/100). Popularity is not fit: check the requirements that matter for your project.

Are HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) and Kinetica open source?

Yes. HEAVY.AI (HeavyDB) is open source. License: Apache License 2.0. No. Kinetica is proprietary, closed-source software.