[wiz21c]

I think the question is actually: "can I safely (like it's not going to melt or catch fire) use the RPI5 under any load without active cooling) ?".

[mlyle]

Sure, you can.

If you frequently work it really hard, it'll have larger temperature swings and may fail earlier, but it'll still probably last quite awhile. The failure is not likely to be catching on fire.