MSI Cubi NUC AI+ 2MG-018US Black

A tiny Windows desktop with way too much RAM and an AI sticker on the box. Buy it for multitasking work, but don't dare launch a game.

MSI's Cubi NUC AI+ is a palm-sized PC that stuffs a Core Ultra 9, a generous 32GB of RAM, and a bunch of Copilot+ AI tricks into a box you can hide behind a monitor. It's aimed at creative pros and office warriors who want a clutter-free desk, and for those tasks, it genuinely delivers. But don't mistake the 'Ultra 9' badge for all-purpose power, the integrated Intel Arc 140V GPU holds this thing back hard the moment you try gaming or heavy 3D work.

The standout here is the 32GB of DDR5, sitting at the 92nd percentile among all desktops we track, which is overkill for most office apps but a dream for heavy multitaskers. The Core Ultra 9 processor is mid-pack at the 48th percentile, but it chews through spreadsheets, coding, and photo edits without breaking a sweat. The real shock is the integrated GPU. It's down at the 11th percentile, meaning it's one of the weakest we've tested this year. You can forget gaming at anything above 720p low settings, though it does handle basic media encoding and AI-enhanced photo tools reasonably well.

There's a wild price spread we found across vendors, from $1,054 to a laughable $232,441 (likely a listing error, but still). If you can grab this near the low end for around a grand, it's a solid productivity upgrade with all that RAM and Windows 11 Pro. Anything above $1,200, and you're better off buying a Mac mini M4, which is faster, smaller, and cheaper.

The Cubi NUC AI+'s most obvious rival is the Apple Mac mini M4, which costs less, takes up even less space, and smokes it in both CPU and GPU performance. For Windows loyalists, the Cubi's AI gimmicks and 32GB of RAM might justify the buy, but most of that Copilot+ software runs on any capable machine anyway. On the gaming side, full-size towers like the HP OMEN 45L and Lenovo Legion Tower 5i are in a completely different league, but they're enormous compared to this tiny box. Among compact Windows desktops, the Cubi's RAM and port selection make it a standout, but the integrated graphics remain the dealbreaker for many.

If you want any kind of gaming performance, skip this. An $800 mini PC with a dedicated GTX 1650 will embarrass it. And if you're not glued to Windows, the Mac mini M4 does everything better for less money. This is only for Windows-dependent pros who need lots of RAM and AI fluff in a tiny footprint.

The MSI Cubi NUC AI+ is a niche champ for Windows users who need 32GB of RAM in a tidy, AI-sprinkled package for work and light creative tasks. But if you don't care about Copilot+ features or need even a crumb of gaming power, the Mac mini M4 is the smarter, faster, and cheaper choice. For anyone else, this is a hard sell unless you find it at the bottom of that crazy price range.