A multi-layer artificial neural network having at least one high-speed communication interface and N computational layers is provided. N is an integer larger than 1. The N computational layers are serially connected via the at least one high-speed communication interface. Each of the N computational layers respectively includes a computation circuit and a local memory. The local memory is configured to store input data and learnable parameters for the computation circuit. The computation circuit in the ith computational layer provides its computation results, via the at least one high-speed communication interface, to the local memory in the (i+1)th computational layer as the input data for the computation circuit in the (i+1)th computational layer, wherein i is an integer index ranging from 1 to (N−1).