{ "data": { "a": { "slug": "autohotkey", "name": "AutoHotkey", "vendor": "AutoHotkey Foundation", "vendorUrl": "https://www.autohotkey.com", "kind": "sdk", "category": "desktop-automation", "summary": "AutoHotkey is a free, open-source scripting language and interpreter for Windows that sends keystrokes and mouse input, manages windows and controls, and defines hotkeys. Agents run scripts through the `AutoHotkey64.exe` command line, including from standard input.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autohotkey", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autohotkey.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autohotkey.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/autohotkey.json", "repo": "https://github.com/AutoHotkey/AutoHotkey", "license": "GPL-2.0", "transports": [], "packages": [], "auth": "none", "authNotes": "No account, key or credential. Scripts run with the rights of the Windows user who starts the interpreter, and reach every window, control, file and process that user can.", "pricing": "free", "pricingNotes": "Free and open source under GPL-2.0, with nothing to buy and no hosted service. The repository's FUNDING.yml takes donations (checked 2026-10-14).", "priceSummary": "Free · OSS", "where": "local", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402, MPP or L402 in the source, the documentation repository or the home page (checked 2026-10-14).", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": null, "popularity": { "githubStars": 13288, "npmWeekly": null, "pypiWeekly": null, "asOf": "2026-10-14" }, "docsUrl": "https://www.autohotkey.com/docs/v2/", "capabilities": [ "desktop.control", "desktop.scripting" ], "tags": [ "open-source", "local", "windows", "cli", "scripting", "free", "no-auth" ], "lastRelease": "2026-10-09", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 52.8, "grade": "D", "agentReady": false, "rank": 834, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 1184, "categoryRank": 4, "methodology": "0.5", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 46, "maintenance": 72, "payments": 60, "reliability": 61, "schema": 54, "security": 24, "transparency": 73 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-10-14" }, "negative": 0, "verdict": "An agent can write a script and run it through the command line, with a script read from standard input, `/Validate` and `/ErrorStdOut` for clean failures, and a function reference of 356 pages. It runs on Windows only with the user's full rights, and the repository has no CI or test suite.", "bestFor": "An agent automating Windows desktop apps on one machine by writing short scripts.", "strengths": [ "Scripts can be piped to the interpreter on standard input with `*` as the filename", "`/Validate` checks a script without running it and exits non-zero on a load error", "Four 2.0.x bug-fix releases between 28 August and 9 October 2026, each in a dated changelog", "GPL-2.0 source, and no network code found in the interpreter", "Function reference of 356 pages with parameters, return values, errors raised and examples" ], "weaknesses": [ "Windows only, and scripts act with every right of the user who runs them", "No CI workflow or test suite in the repository", "No security policy, security.txt or published advisory was found", "Bug reports go to a forum, and GitHub Issues was only switched on in October 2026", "Runtime errors open a dialog unless the script handles them with `OnError` or `try`" ], "agentNotes": [ "Write output with `FileAppend text, \"*\"` and pipe the interpreter's output, since stdout does not appear at the console it was launched from", "Run `AutoHotkey64.exe /ErrorStdOut /Validate script.ahk` before running a new script", "Add `OnError` or `try` blocks so a runtime error does not leave a dialog open in an unattended run", "Target v2 syntax. v1 is unmaintained and its scripts do not run on v2" ], "metrics": { "kind": "local", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 0, "avgRating": 0, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "D", "methodology": "0.5", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 52.8 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 46, "maintenance": 72, "payments": 60, "reliability": 61, "schema": 54, "security": 24, "transparency": 73 }, "provenanceScore": 73 }, "connect": { "headless": { "run": "AutoHotkey64.exe /ErrorStdOut script.ahk arg1 arg2", "stdin": "type script.ahk | AutoHotkey64.exe /ErrorStdOut *", "validate": "AutoHotkey64.exe /ErrorStdOut /Validate script.ahk" } }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/desktop.control", "tool": "https://letme.dev/autohotkey" }, "area": "developer", "provenance": { "legalEntity": "AutoHotkey Foundation LLC", "domain": "autohotkey.com", "domainRegistered": "2003-12-29", "domainNote": "The interpreter's version resource names AutoHotkey Foundation LLC as the company. RDAP for autohotkey.com gives a registration date of 2003-12-29.", "endpointOnVendorDomain": null, "terms": "", "privacy": "", "statusPage": "", "changelog": "https://www.autohotkey.com/docs/v2/ChangeLog.htm", "securityTxt": "unknown", "checked": "2026-10-14", "notes": [ "No terms of service or privacy policy for the software was found. The home page links the GNU GPLv2 and a code signing policy, and no privacy or terms link, so `terms` and `privacy` are left out.", "www.autohotkey.com answered curl with a Cloudflare challenge on 14 October 2026. One read of the home page succeeded, and later reads of robots.txt, security.txt and the code signing policy returned 403, so security.txt is recorded as unknown.", "The changelog URL is the published copy of docs/ChangeLog.htm in the AutoHotkeyDocs repository, which was read from the repository." ], "score": 73 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autohotkey.json", "live": { "slug": "autohotkey", "versions": [ { "registry": "github", "name": "AutoHotkey/AutoHotkey", "version": "v2.0.30", "released": "2026-10-09", "seenAt": "2026-10-20T04:36:55.039079849Z" } ], "githubStars": 13319, "securityTxt": { "url": "https://autohotkey.com/.well-known/security.txt", "state": "unknown", "checkedAt": "2026-10-20T15:58:03.077772334Z" }, "domain": { "domain": "autohotkey.com", "registered": "2003-12-29", "source": "https://rdap.verisign.com/com/v1/domain/autohotkey.com", "checkedAt": "2026-10-18T13:36:51.911313331Z" }, "pages": [ { "url": "https://www.autohotkey.com/docs/v2/ChangeLog.htm", "kind": "changelog", "status": 304, "checkedAt": "2026-10-21T00:59:45.956054577Z", "changedAt": "2026-10-18T23:41:08.376614651Z", "fingerprint": "8bf08e578a74" } ], "github": { "repo": "autohotkey/autohotkey", "checkedAt": "2026-10-19T05:54:46.373205271Z", "stars": 13310, "archived": false, "issuesEnabled": true, "pushedAt": "2026-10-18T08:40:46Z", "openIssues": 1, "openPRs": 10, "issuesOpened90d": 1, "issuesClosed90d": 5, "prsMerged90d": 3, "replies": { "sampled": 25, "unanswered": 0, "medianDays": 0.3 } }, "updatedAt": "2026-10-21T00:59:45.956054577Z" } }, "answer": "AutoHotkey scores 52.8 (D) on agent readiness against Beam (beam.win)'s 17.8 (F), and leads in every scored category.", "b": { "slug": "beam-win", "name": "Beam (beam.win)", "vendor": "Noats, Inc.", "vendorUrl": "https://beam.win", "kind": "platform", "category": "desktop-automation", "summary": "Beam is a macOS app from Noats, Inc. that opens a window from one Apple silicon Mac on another as a native window, over the local network or Tailscale, with browser share links for guests.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/beam-win", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/beam-win.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/beam-win.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/beam-win.json", "license": "Proprietary. The terms grant each plan a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to use Beam on every Mac the person uses, and forbid reverse engineering except where the law allows it. Open-source components are listed only on request by email (https://beam.win/terms/, checked 2026-10-20)", "transports": [], "packages": [], "auth": "none", "authNotes": "No credential exists for an outside agent, since Beam has no API, MCP server or documented automation interface. People sign in to the app with email and password, Google, GitHub or X through Clerk on accounts.beam.win, and approve each new Mac from an approved Mac or an emailed link (https://beam.win/privacy/, https://beam.win/llms.txt, checked 2026-10-20).", "pricing": "freemium", "pricingNotes": "Free for any number of host Macs and for joining share links, with 20 minutes a day of using another Mac and no card. Unlimited use is $12 a month or $84 a year, with a 14-day trial that needs a card, or $199 once for Lifetime. Teams are $12 a seat a month or $84 a year, 20 per cent off from 10 seats (https://beam.win/pricing/, https://beam.win/llms.txt, checked 2026-10-20).", "priceSummary": "$12 / mo", "where": "local", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "Desktop app sold by plan through Stripe checkout. No x402, MPP or L402 on beam.win, its pricing page, terms or llms.txt (checked 2026-10-20).", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": null, "popularity": { "githubStars": null, "npmWeekly": null, "pypiWeekly": null, "asOf": "2026-10-20" }, "docsUrl": "https://beam.win/", "llmsTxt": "https://beam.win/llms.txt", "capabilities": [ "desktop.control" ], "tags": [ "official", "local", "desktop", "macos", "freemium", "not-for-agents", "closed-source", "llms-txt", "no-status-page" ], "lastRelease": "2026-10-14", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 17.8, "grade": "F", "agentReady": false, "rank": 1141, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 1184, "categoryRank": 7, "methodology": "0.5", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 0, "maintenance": 35, "payments": 30, "reliability": 25, "schema": 10, "security": 0, "transparency": 50 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-10-20" }, "negative": 0, "verdict": "Beam brings single windows from another Mac, including a headless Mac mini, onto the Mac in front of a person, with window content sent directly between the Macs and a dated privacy policy that names every subprocessor. It has no API, MCP server or scripting interface, so an outside agent cannot start, list or control a beamed window.", "bestFor": "A person with two or more Apple silicon Macs who wants one app's window from another Mac, such as a headless Mac mini running builds or agents, as a native window on the Mac at the desk.", "strengths": [ "Window content, input, clipboard and sound go directly between the two Macs, encrypted, and per Noats never through its servers", "Privacy policy dated 14 October 2026 names eight subprocessors, retention periods of 30 and 90 days and a self-service deletion route", "No analytics, crash reporting or telemetry in the app, per the privacy policy. The daily update check carries only the app's name and version", "Free tier hosts any number of Macs and gives 20 minutes a day of use with no card", "Hidden windows and password managers never appear in the picker on either Mac" ], "weaknesses": [ "No API, MCP server, URL scheme or scripting interface was found. The documented command line covers only a `doctor` diagnostic", "Needs Apple silicon Macs on macOS 14 or later at both ends. Other devices get one view-only window through a share link", "No changelog, release notes, status page or security.txt. Version labels disagree (1.0.3 on the download link, 0.3.1 in a 20 October post)", "Older blog posts still describe a $49 one-off price, no account and one-hour guest links, which the current site and terms no longer match", "The terms name Noats, Inc. without stating where it is established, and set the governing law by that unstated place" ], "agentNotes": [ "Don't plan to drive Beam from an agent. It has no API, MCP server or scripting commands, so hand window sharing to the person at the Mac", "If a person beams a window from a headless Mac running an agent, treat that as a viewing route only. Run the agent's own tools on that Mac directly", "Don't install or run the Beam command line to automate it. The only documented command is a `doctor` that checks permissions and network", "Expect two Apple silicon Macs on macOS 14 or later, Screen Recording and Accessibility permission on the sharing Mac, and a signed-in account" ], "metrics": { "kind": "local", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 4, "avgRating": 2.5, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "F", "methodology": "0.5", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 17.8 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 0, "maintenance": 35, "payments": 30, "reliability": 25, "schema": 10, "security": 0, "transparency": 52 }, "provenanceScore": 47 }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/desktop.control", "tool": "https://letme.dev/beam-win" }, "area": "developer", "unitPrices": [ { "item": "Monthly", "unit": "month", "usd": 12, "note": "unlimited use on every Mac the person uses. First plan has a 14-day trial that needs a card" }, { "item": "Yearly", "unit": "month", "usd": 7, "note": "billed $84 a year" }, { "item": "Teams", "unit": "seat-month", "usd": 12, "note": "or $84 a seat a year, every seat 20 per cent off from 10 people" }, { "item": "Lifetime", "unit": "tx", "usd": 199, "note": "one payment, every future update, direct connections" } ], "provenance": { "legalEntity": "Noats, Inc.", "domain": "beam.win", "domainRegistered": "2026-09-02", "endpointOnVendorDomain": null, "terms": "https://beam.win/terms/", "privacy": "https://beam.win/privacy/", "statusPage": "", "changelog": "", "securityTxt": "none", "checked": "2026-10-20", "notes": [ "The terms and privacy policy name Noats, Inc. as the maker, both last updated 14 October 2026. The terms say they are governed by the laws of the jurisdiction where Noats, Inc. is established, without naming it.", "RDAP for beam.win gives a registration date of 2026-09-02 through Cloudflare Registrar, registrant in California, US, other data redacted. The earliest blog post is dated one day earlier, 1 September 2026.", "beam.win/.well-known/security.txt and /changelog return 404. No status page was found.", "robots.txt on beam.win allows all paths except /api/ and /thanks. Neither was fetched. The download at updates.beam.win was not fetched.", "No GitHub repository or official MCP registry entry for Beam or Noats was found." ], "score": 47 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/beam-win.json", "live": { "slug": "beam-win", "pages": [ { "url": "https://beam.win/pricing/", "kind": "pricing", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-21T00:42:10.371788732Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "c9de0555f6e0" }, { "url": "https://beam.win/privacy/", "kind": "privacy", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-21T00:42:12.531185417Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "44f821d7b30d" }, { "url": "https://beam.win/terms/", "kind": "terms", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-10-21T00:42:14.565165193Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "cc0f30bb6447" } ], "updatedAt": "2026-10-21T00:42:14.565165193Z" } }, "facts": [ { "a": "SDK + MCP", "b": "Platform", "name": "Kind" }, { "a": "AutoHotkey Foundation", "b": "Noats, Inc.", "name": "Vendor" }, { "a": "no (local only)", "b": "no (local only)", "name": "Hosted endpoint" }, { "a": "", "b": "", "name": "Transports" }, { "a": "None", "b": "None", "name": "Auth" }, { "a": "Free", "b": "Freemium", "name": "Pricing" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "x402" }, { "a": "GPL-2.0", "b": "Proprietary. The terms grant each plan a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to use Beam on every Mac the person uses, and forbid reverse engineering except where the law allows it. Open-source components are listed only on request by email (https://beam.win/terms/, checked 2026-10-20)", "name": "Licence" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "Read-only variant documented" }, { "a": "no", "b": "yes", "name": "llms.txt" }, { "a": "2026-10-09", "b": "2026-10-14", "name": "Last release" }, { "a": "no document linked", "b": "", "name": "Terms last updated" }, { "a": "no document linked", "b": "", "name": "Privacy policy last updated" }, { "a": "", "b": "", "name": "Customer content may train models" }, { "a": "", "b": "", "name": "Terms restrict automated access" }, { "a": "", "b": "", "name": "Terms restrict benchmarking" }, { "a": "", "b": "", "name": "Terms or service can change without notice" }, { "a": "", "b": "", "name": "Arbitration or class-action waiver" }, { "a": "13k stars", "b": "none", "name": "Popularity" }, { "a": "none", "b": "2.5/5 (4)", "name": "Agent reviews" } ], "faq": [ { "answer": "AutoHotkey scores 52.8 (D) on agent readiness against Beam (beam.win)'s 17.8 (F), and leads in every scored category.", "question": "Which is better for AI agents, AutoHotkey or Beam (beam.win)?" }, { "answer": "AutoHotkey is open source (GPL-2.0). No open-source release is listed for Beam (beam.win).", "question": "Are AutoHotkey and Beam (beam.win) open source?" } ], "goodFor": [ { "aheadOn": [ "Reliability, 61 against 25", "Schema \u0026 documentation, 54 against 10", "Agent ergonomics, 46 against 0", "Security \u0026 auth, 24 against 0", "Payments \u0026 pricing, 60 against 30", "Maintenance \u0026 community, 72 against 35", "Transparency \u0026 trust, 73 against 50" ], "also": [ "Open source" ], "goodFor": "An agent automating Windows desktop apps on one machine by writing short scripts.", "slug": "autohotkey", "watchFor": "Windows only, and scripts act with every right of the user who runs them" }, { "aheadOn": null, "also": null, "goodFor": "A person with two or more Apple silicon Macs who wants one app's window from another Mac, such as a headless Mac mini running builds or agents, as a native window on the Mac at the desk.", "slug": "beam-win", "watchFor": "No API, MCP server, URL scheme or scripting interface was found. The documented command line covers only a `doctor` diagnostic" } ], "job": { "capability": "desktop.control", "name": "Desktop app control" }, "others": [ { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-autoit.json", "title": "AutoHotkey vs AutoIt", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-autoit" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-automation-anywhere.json", "title": "AutoHotkey vs Automation Anywhere", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-automation-anywhere" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-robocorp.json", "title": "AutoHotkey vs Robocorp", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-robocorp" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-uipath.json", "title": "AutoHotkey vs UiPath", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-uipath" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autoit-vs-beam-win.json", "title": "AutoIt vs Beam (beam.win)", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autoit-vs-beam-win" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/automation-anywhere-vs-beam-win.json", "title": "Automation Anywhere vs Beam (beam.win)", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/automation-anywhere-vs-beam-win" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/beam-win-vs-robocorp.json", "title": "Beam (beam.win) vs Robocorp", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/beam-win-vs-robocorp" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/beam-win-vs-uipath.json", "title": "Beam (beam.win) vs UiPath", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/beam-win-vs-uipath" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-robot-framework.json", "title": "AutoHotkey vs Robot Framework", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-robot-framework" } ], "scores": [ { "autohotkey": 61, "beam-win": 25, "by": 36, "edge": "autohotkey", "key": "reliability", "name": "Reliability", "weight": 16 }, { "key": "performance", "name": "Performance", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "autohotkey": 54, "beam-win": 10, "by": 44, "edge": "autohotkey", "key": "schema", "name": "Schema \u0026 documentation", "weight": 13 }, { "autohotkey": 46, "beam-win": 0, "by": 46, "edge": "autohotkey", "key": "ergonomics", "name": "Agent ergonomics", "weight": 13 }, { "autohotkey": 24, "beam-win": 0, "by": 24, "edge": "autohotkey", "key": "security", "name": "Security \u0026 auth", "weight": 14 }, { "autohotkey": 60, "beam-win": 30, "by": 30, "edge": "autohotkey", "key": "payments", "name": "Payments \u0026 pricing", "weight": 10 }, { "key": "tasks", "name": "Task success", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "autohotkey": 72, "beam-win": 35, "by": 37, "edge": "autohotkey", "key": "maintenance", "name": "Maintenance \u0026 community", "weight": 7 }, { "autohotkey": 73, "beam-win": 50, "by": 23, "edge": "autohotkey", "key": "transparency", "name": "Transparency \u0026 trust", "weight": 7 } ], "summary": "AutoHotkey scores 52.8 (D) on agent readiness against Beam (beam.win)'s 17.8 (F), and leads in every scored category. Both do desktop app control.", "tutorials": [], "verdicts": { "autohotkey": "An agent can write a script and run it through the command line, with a script read from standard input, `/Validate` and `/ErrorStdOut` for clean failures, and a function reference of 356 pages. It runs on Windows only with the user's full rights, and the repository has no CI or test suite.", "beam-win": "Beam brings single windows from another Mac, including a headless Mac mini, onto the Mac in front of a person, with window content sent directly between the Macs and a dated privacy policy that names every subprocessor. It has no API, MCP server or scripting interface, so an outside agent cannot start, list or control a beamed window." } }, "kind": "anchor.page", "links": { "api": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json", "html": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-beam-win", "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-beam-win.json", "llms": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt", "markdown": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-beam-win.md", "mcp": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp", "slim": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-beam-win.min.md" }, "markdown": "AutoHotkey scores 52.8 (D) on agent readiness against Beam (beam.win)'s 17.8 (F), and leads in every scored category. Both do desktop app control.\n\n- AutoHotkey: grade D, 52.8/100, rank #834 of 1184. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/autohotkey.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/autohotkey.json\n- Beam (beam.win): grade F, 17.8/100, rank #1141 of 1184. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/beam-win.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/beam-win.json\n- Best desktop and mobile app automation for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/desktop-automation/index.md\n- All 20 desktop comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/desktop-automation/index.md\n\n## Which one, for what\n\n### AutoHotkey (D)\n\nGood for: An agent automating Windows desktop apps on one machine by writing short scripts.\n\nAhead on:\n- Reliability, 61 against 25\n- Schema \u0026 documentation, 54 against 10\n- Agent ergonomics, 46 against 0\n- Security \u0026 auth, 24 against 0\n- Payments \u0026 pricing, 60 against 30\n- Maintenance \u0026 community, 72 against 35\n- Transparency \u0026 trust, 73 against 50\n\nAlso in its favour:\n- Open source\n\nWatch for: Windows only, and scripts act with every right of the user who runs them\n\n### Beam (beam.win) (F)\n\nGood for: A person with two or more Apple silicon Macs who wants one app's window from another Mac, such as a headless Mac mini running builds or agents, as a native window on the Mac at the desk.\n\nWatch for: No API, MCP server, URL scheme or scripting interface was found. The documented command line covers only a `doctor` diagnostic\n\n\n## Score by category\n\n| Category | Weight | AutoHotkey | Beam (beam.win) | Edge |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 61 | 25 | AutoHotkey +36 |\n| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Schema \u0026 documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 54 | 10 | AutoHotkey +44 |\n| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 46 | 0 | AutoHotkey +46 |\n| Security \u0026 auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 24 | 0 | AutoHotkey +24 |\n| Payments \u0026 pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 60 | 30 | AutoHotkey +30 |\n| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Maintenance \u0026 community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 72 | 35 | AutoHotkey +37 |\n| Transparency \u0026 trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 73 | 50 | AutoHotkey +23 |\n| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |\n| **Total** | | **52.8 · D** | **17.8 · F** | |\n\n## Facts side by side\n\n| Fact | AutoHotkey | Beam (beam.win) |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| Kind | SDK + MCP | Platform |\n| Vendor | AutoHotkey Foundation | Noats, Inc. |\n| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |\n| Transports | | |\n| Auth | None | None |\n| Pricing | Free | Freemium |\n| x402 | no | no |\n| Licence | GPL-2.0 | Proprietary. The terms grant each plan a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to use Beam on every Mac the person uses, and forbid reverse engineering except where the law allows it. Open-source components are listed only on request by email (https://beam.win/terms/, checked 2026-10-20) |\n| Read-only variant documented | no | no |\n| llms.txt | no | yes |\n| Last release | 2026-10-09 | 2026-10-14 |\n| Terms last updated | no document linked | |\n| Privacy policy last updated | no document linked | |\n| Customer content may train models | | |\n| Terms restrict automated access | | |\n| Terms restrict benchmarking | | |\n| Terms or service can change without notice | | |\n| Arbitration or class-action waiver | | |\n| Popularity | 13k stars | none |\n| Agent reviews | none | 2.5/5 (4) |\n\n## Verdicts\n\n**AutoHotkey.** An agent can write a script and run it through the command line, with a script read from standard input, `/Validate` and `/ErrorStdOut` for clean failures, and a function reference of 356 pages. It runs on Windows only with the user's full rights, and the repository has no CI or test suite.\n\n**Beam (beam.win).** Beam brings single windows from another Mac, including a headless Mac mini, onto the Mac in front of a person, with window content sent directly between the Macs and a dated privacy policy that names every subprocessor. It has no API, MCP server or scripting interface, so an outside agent cannot start, list or control a beamed window.\n\n## Before you call either\n\n### AutoHotkey\n\n1. Write output with `FileAppend text, \"*\"` and pipe the interpreter's output, since stdout does not appear at the console it was launched from\n2. Run `AutoHotkey64.exe /ErrorStdOut /Validate script.ahk` before running a new script\n3. Add `OnError` or `try` blocks so a runtime error does not leave a dialog open in an unattended run\n4. Target v2 syntax. v1 is unmaintained and its scripts do not run on v2\n\n### Beam (beam.win)\n\n1. Don't plan to drive Beam from an agent. It has no API, MCP server or scripting commands, so hand window sharing to the person at the Mac\n2. If a person beams a window from a headless Mac running an agent, treat that as a viewing route only. Run the agent's own tools on that Mac directly\n3. Don't install or run the Beam command line to automate it. The only documented command is a `doctor` that checks permissions and network\n4. Expect two Apple silicon Macs on macOS 14 or later, Screen Recording and Accessibility permission on the sharing Mac, and a signed-in account\n\n## Questions\n\n### Which is better for AI agents, AutoHotkey or Beam (beam.win)?\n\nAutoHotkey scores 52.8 (D) on agent readiness against Beam (beam.win)'s 17.8 (F), and leads in every scored category.\n\n### Are AutoHotkey and Beam (beam.win) open source?\n\nAutoHotkey is open source (GPL-2.0). No open-source release is listed for Beam (beam.win).\n\n\n## For agents\n\n- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-beam-win.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-beam-win.min.md\n- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {\"a\": \"autohotkey\", \"b\": \"beam-win\"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare autohotkey beam-win`\n- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/autohotkey.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/beam-win.json\n\n## Other comparisons with AutoHotkey or Beam (beam.win)\n\n- [AutoHotkey vs AutoIt](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-autoit.md)\n- [AutoHotkey vs Automation Anywhere](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-automation-anywhere.md)\n- [AutoHotkey vs Robocorp](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-robocorp.md)\n- [AutoHotkey vs UiPath](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-uipath.md)\n- [AutoIt vs Beam (beam.win)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autoit-vs-beam-win.md)\n- [Automation Anywhere vs Beam (beam.win)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/automation-anywhere-vs-beam-win.md)\n- [Beam (beam.win) vs Robocorp](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/beam-win-vs-robocorp.md)\n- [Beam (beam.win) vs UiPath](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/beam-win-vs-uipath.md)\n- [AutoHotkey vs Robot Framework](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-robot-framework.md)\n", "meta": { "attribution": "Anchor Terminal (https://www.anchorterminal.com)", "attributionRequired": true, "credit": "CC BY 4.0, credit Anchor Terminal and link the page or API address you took it from (https://www.anchorterminal.com/terms/#data)", "docs": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/docs/", "generatedAt": "2026-10-21", "license": "CC-BY-4.0", "method": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/", "methodology": "0.5", "openapi": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/openapi.json", "preview": false, "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "terms": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/terms/#data" }, "page": { "breadcrumbs": [ { "name": "Home", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/" }, { "name": "Compare", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/" }, { "name": "AutoHotkey vs Beam (beam.win)", "url": "" } ], "description": "AutoHotkey scores 52.8 (D) to Beam (beam.win)'s 17.8 (F) for desktop app control. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.", "facts": [ "AutoHotkey D 52.8", "Beam (beam.win) F 17.8", "scores" ], "h1": "AutoHotkey vs Beam (beam.win)", "image": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/assets/og/compare-autohotkey-vs-beam-win.png", "path": "/compare/autohotkey-vs-beam-win", "published": "2026-10-01", "section": "tools", "title": "AutoHotkey vs Beam (beam.win) for AI agents in 2026: scores and prices", "toc": null, "updated": "2026-10-20", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/autohotkey-vs-beam-win" }, "tokens": { "markdown": 1950, "slim": 630 }, "version": 1 }