Go gets compared to "systems programming" languages because its designers specifically intended it to be used as such [1][2], albeit the definition of 'systems' they are using is deliberately evolved from the original shade of meaning as suggested by low-level languages that are sometimes deemed to be for 'systems programming' to illustrate that the nature of environments has changed, and a new approach is advantageous.

[1] https://talks.golang.org/2012/splash.article [2] https://golang.org/doc/faq