CrewAI

Open-source framework for orchestrating multi-agent AI systems and autonomous teams

deepset (Haystack)

German AI company behind Haystack — the open-source framework for building production RAG and agent applications

CrewAI

Moderate

15/25

deepset (Haystack)

Excellent

24/25

Score Breakdown

DimensionCrewAIdeepset (Haystack)

Data Residency

Where is your data stored and processed?

CrewAI: Self-hosted framework: maximum data sovereignty—deploy on any EU infrastructure. Cloud platform: US-hosted. Score reflects the self-hosted path which most serious EU deployments will use.

deepset (Haystack): EU hosting available for managed platform. On-premises and air-gapped deployments fully supported. Open-source framework runs entirely locally with zero external data flow.

4/5

Self-hosted framework: maximum data sovereignty—deploy on any EU infrastructure. Cloud platform: US-hosted. Score reflects the self-hosted path which most serious EU deployments will use.

5/5

EU hosting available for managed platform. On-premises and air-gapped deployments fully supported. Open-source framework runs entirely locally with zero external data flow.

Legal Jurisdiction

Which laws govern the company and your data?

CrewAI: US-incorporated but Apache 2.0 open-source licence means self-hosted instances are not under vendor jurisdiction. Cloud platform falls under US jurisdiction. Self-hosted EU deployments achieve full EU legal control.

deepset (Haystack): German GmbH, fully under EU law. Berlin headquarters. No US parent company. Investors include EU and US VCs but corporate governance remains German.

3/5

US-incorporated but Apache 2.0 open-source licence means self-hosted instances are not under vendor jurisdiction. Cloud platform falls under US jurisdiction. Self-hosted EU deployments achieve full EU legal control.

5/5

German GmbH, fully under EU law. Berlin headquarters. No US parent company. Investors include EU and US VCs but corporate governance remains German.

Data Retention & Training

Is your data used for model training?

CrewAI: Self-hosted: full control over all agent data, task outputs, and intermediate results. Cloud platform has standard SaaS data retention. Open-source path provides maximum data lifecycle control.

deepset (Haystack): Terms restrict data use to anonymised system data only. No explicit public 'we don't train' statement, but contractual restrictions are clear. Self-hosted gives full control.

4/5

Self-hosted: full control over all agent data, task outputs, and intermediate results. Cloud platform has standard SaaS data retention. Open-source path provides maximum data lifecycle control.

4/5

Terms restrict data use to anonymised system data only. No explicit public 'we don't train' statement, but contractual restrictions are clear. Self-hosted gives full control.

Certifications

ISO 27001, SOC 2, Cyber Essentials, etc.

CrewAI: No published independent security certifications for the company. Early-stage startup with self-attested security practices. For self-hosted enterprise deployments, your own security controls apply.

deepset (Haystack): SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, HIPAA, and CSA STAR Level 1. Comprehensive certification suite for enterprise procurement. Third-party DPO (secjur).

1/5

No published independent security certifications for the company. Early-stage startup with self-attested security practices. For self-hosted enterprise deployments, your own security controls apply.

5/5

SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, HIPAA, and CSA STAR Level 1. Comprehensive certification suite for enterprise procurement. Third-party DPO (secjur).

Regulatory Fit

Suitability for regulated industries and professional services

CrewAI: Self-hosted on EU infrastructure with EU-sovereign LLM providers achieves excellent regulatory fit. Cloud platform not recommended for EU regulated industries. Good choice for technical teams building multi-agent AI systems with sovereignty requirements.

deepset (Haystack): German GmbH with EU hosting, self-hosting option, and strong certifications. One of the best-positioned AI developer tools for EU regulated industries including financial services and healthcare.

3/5

Self-hosted on EU infrastructure with EU-sovereign LLM providers achieves excellent regulatory fit. Cloud platform not recommended for EU regulated industries. Good choice for technical teams building multi-agent AI systems with sovereignty requirements.

5/5

German GmbH with EU hosting, self-hosting option, and strong certifications. One of the best-positioned AI developer tools for EU regulated industries including financial services and healthcare.

Total Score

15/25

24/25

Best For

CrewAI

Best for privacy-conscious teams who need strong data retention controls; organisations that need self-hosted or on-premise deployment; teams on a tight budget.

deepset (Haystack)

Best for EU-headquartered organisations needing maximum data sovereignty; organisations requiring broad certification coverage (SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, CSA STAR Level 1); regulated industries (BaFin, CNIL); privacy-conscious teams who need strong data retention controls; organisations that need self-hosted or on-premise deployment; teams on a tight budget; enterprises requiring SSO integration.

Detailed Comparison

CrewAI vs deepset (Haystack): Trust & Compliance Comparison

CrewAI (CrewAI, US) scores 15/25 overall with a Bronze (Moderate) trust badge. Open-source framework for orchestrating multi-agent AI systems and autonomous teams. deepset (Haystack) (deepset, DE) scores 24/25 with a Gold (Excellent) trust badge. German AI company behind Haystack — the open-source framework for building production RAG and agent applications.

Dimension-by-Dimension Breakdown

#### Data Residency

deepset (Haystack) leads with 5/5 vs 4/5.

●CrewAI (4/5): Self-hosted framework: maximum data sovereignty—deploy on any EU infrastructure. Cloud platform: US-hosted. Score reflects the self-hosted path which most serious EU deployments will use.

●deepset (Haystack) (5/5): EU hosting available for managed platform. On-premises and air-gapped deployments fully supported. Open-source framework runs entirely locally with zero external data flow.

#### Legal Jurisdiction

deepset (Haystack) leads with 5/5 vs 3/5.

●CrewAI (3/5): US-incorporated but Apache 2.0 open-source licence means self-hosted instances are not under vendor jurisdiction. Cloud platform falls under US jurisdiction. Self-hosted EU deployments achieve full EU legal control.

●deepset (Haystack) (5/5): German GmbH, fully under EU law. Berlin headquarters. No US parent company. Investors include EU and US VCs but corporate governance remains German.

#### Data Retention & Training

Both score equally at 4/5.

●CrewAI (4/5): Self-hosted: full control over all agent data, task outputs, and intermediate results. Cloud platform has standard SaaS data retention. Open-source path provides maximum data lifecycle control.

●deepset (Haystack) (4/5): Terms restrict data use to anonymised system data only. No explicit public 'we don't train' statement, but contractual restrictions are clear. Self-hosted gives full control.

#### Certifications

deepset (Haystack) leads with 5/5 vs 1/5.

●CrewAI (1/5): No published independent security certifications for the company. Early-stage startup with self-attested security practices. For self-hosted enterprise deployments, your own security controls apply.

●deepset (Haystack) (5/5): SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001, HIPAA, and CSA STAR Level 1. Comprehensive certification suite for enterprise procurement. Third-party DPO (secjur).

#### Regulatory Fit

deepset (Haystack) leads with 5/5 vs 3/5.

●CrewAI (3/5): Self-hosted on EU infrastructure with EU-sovereign LLM providers achieves excellent regulatory fit. Cloud platform not recommended for EU regulated industries. Good choice for technical teams building multi-agent AI systems with sovereignty requirements.

●deepset (Haystack) (5/5): German GmbH with EU hosting, self-hosting option, and strong certifications. One of the best-positioned AI developer tools for EU regulated industries including financial services and healthcare.

Certifications at a Glance

Certification	CrewAI	deepset (Haystack)
CSA STAR Level 1	No	Yes
ISO 27001	No	Yes
SOC 2 Type II	No	Yes

Overall Verdict

deepset (Haystack) has a clear trust advantage, scoring 24/25 compared to CrewAI's 15/25. deepset (Haystack) particularly excels in data residency, legal jurisdiction, certifications, regulatory fit.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is better for EU compliance, CrewAI or deepset (Haystack)?

CrewAI has a TrustKit score of 15/25 while deepset (Haystack) scores 24/25. deepset (Haystack) currently rates higher across data residency, legal jurisdiction, data retention, certifications, and regulatory fit.

How do CrewAI and deepset (Haystack) compare on data residency?

CrewAI scores 4/5 for data residency (Self-hosted framework: maximum data sovereignty—deploy on any EU infrastructure. Cloud platform: US-hosted. Score reflects the self-hosted path which most serious EU deployments will use.), while deepset (Haystack) scores 5/5 (EU hosting available for managed platform. On-premises and air-gapped deployments fully supported. Open-source framework runs entirely locally with zero external data flow.).

Are CrewAI and deepset (Haystack) GDPR compliant?

Both tools are assessed across five compliance dimensions. CrewAI has a regulatory fit score of 3/5 and deepset (Haystack) scores 5/5. Check the full comparison above for a detailed breakdown.

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