How much power does a local AI box actually use?
The short answer
Under 120 watts at peak. That is a ceiling, not a typical figure, and the typical number is much lower.
Where the number comes from
The chip in these machines has a configurable power envelope. Set it low and the box draws around 45 watts and runs cooler and slower. Set it high and it goes to 120 watts for the hardest work. The manufacturer publishes the range rather than one number, because the honest answer is "it depends what you asked it to do."
When we measured a box doing sustained inference, it sat at roughly 85 watts. That is the number we would plan around for a working day of heavy use, not the 120 ceiling.
For comparison: a kettle is 2,000–3,000 watts but runs for two minutes. A desktop tower under load is commonly 350–500 watts. A monitor is 20–40. The AI box sits between a monitor and an old desktop, and it is quieter than both.
What that costs to run
At 85 watts, running 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, the box draws 0.68 kWh a day and about 3.4 kWh a week. Over a year that is roughly 175 kWh.
We are deliberately not putting a dollar figure on it, because electricity prices vary by country, by tariff, and by plan, and a number we made up would be a number you repeated to your accountant. Take the 175 kWh and multiply it by your own rate.
The useful comparison is internal to the machine class. A desktop tower under load is commonly 350–500 watts. At 85 watts sustained, this box uses roughly one fifth of what a conventional gaming-class desktop uses doing the same kind of full-tilt work — for a year, every working day.
And that is for heavy daily use. A box that sits idle most of the day draws a fraction of this.
Cooling, noise, and where it can live
Under 120 watts means no special cooling. It does not need a dedicated circuit, an UPS the size of a filing cabinet, or a room with air conditioning. It can sit on a shelf, under a desk, or on a counter.
It does not need to be in a rack. It does not need hot-aisle/cold-aisle planning. The whole reason the machine is 4.5 litres is that the power draw makes a small enclosure viable.
The thing people ask second: is it heavy?
About 3.1 kg, or 6.8 lb. You can hold it with two hands. There is an optional carry handle.
We are careful with this one because "light" is not true and we would rather say "holdable." It is a desktop machine with a proper heatsink in it. It is not a laptop. But it is a box you can pick up, show someone, put on a different desk, and take to a workshop — which is the point of building it this size.
Why we lead with watts
Because power is the number that decides whether this is feasible in your space. If a machine needed 800 watts and a dedicated circuit, "put AI in your office" would quietly become "fit out a server room," and most small offices cannot do that.
Under 120 watts is what makes the whole idea ordinary. It plugs into the socket you already have.