AutoIt is a 'growing' scripting language. It started as an add-on tool to automate basic tasks in GUI's of other programs.
These tasks (like sending a keystroke or clicking a button) are still the core components of an AutoIt script. However with the recent GUI additions, you can now incorporate your own graphical interface using native AutoIt script commands.
The new COM (Object) functionality fills the gap with WSH languages, such as VBScript/JScript.
With this combination of GUI Automation, GUI Interfaces and COM support, AutoIt a powerful scripting tool that is able to compete with fully-fledged scripting languages like WSH or KiXStart.