Oxylabs, one of the world's leading web intelligence and proxy service providers, has announced a major leadership restructuring. Vytautas Savickas, who served as CEO of Decodo (formerly Smartproxy) for nearly a decade, has been appointed as the new CEO of Oxylabs. Meanwhile, Julius Černiauskas, who led Oxylabs as CEO for almost seven years, is transitioning to the role of Co-founder and Chairman of the Board.
The announcement, made on March 25, 2026, signals a significant evolution for the Oxylabs Group and raises important questions about the future direction of one of the proxy industry's biggest players. For those unfamiliar, both Oxylabs and Decodo operate under the same parent company, Tesonet — the Lithuanian tech conglomerate that also founded Nord Security (NordVPN) and several other technology ventures.
Who Is Vytautas Savickas?
Vytautas Savickas brings over 15 years of management expertise to his new role at Oxylabs. He is best known for leading Decodo — originally founded as Smartproxy in 2018 — through a period of remarkable growth and transformation. Under his leadership, the company grew from a scrappy startup into one of the most recognized names in the proxy industry.
In April 2025, Savickas oversaw the company's rebrand from Smartproxy to Decodo, a move that reflected the company's expansion beyond simple proxy services into a broader suite of web data solutions, including AI integrations and advanced scraping APIs. The rebrand also came with ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certification, signaling Decodo's commitment to enterprise-grade security standards.
Beyond operational leadership, Savickas has been actively involved in shaping industry ethics. Decodo is a co-founder of the Ethical Web Data Collection Initiative (EWDCI), an international consortium of web data aggregation business leaders. In a Q&A published by the EWDCI, Savickas discussed the company's focus on integrating AI technologies into their solutions and enhancing personalized customer experiences.
His background spans scaling startups, B2B SaaS product management, and commercial strategy — all skills that will be critical as he takes the helm of a company serving over 15,000 clients globally with a pool of 177M+ ethically sourced IPs.
You can verify Savickas's role as Decodo CEO through multiple public sources, including his author profile on Decodo's blog (where he is listed as "Former CEO" following the transition) and his listing on The Org's organizational chart for Decodo.
Julius Černiauskas: From CEO to Chairman
Julius Černiauskas has been the driving force behind Oxylabs since he joined the company shortly after its founding in 2015. According to his LinkedIn profile, Černiauskas served as CEO from September 2019, accumulating nearly seven years in the role. Before that, he held other leadership positions within the company, meaning his total involvement with Oxylabs spans over a decade.
During his tenure as CEO, Černiauskas transformed Oxylabs from a basic proxy service into what is now a comprehensive web intelligence ecosystem. Key milestones under his leadership include the launch of residential IP solutions in 2017, pioneering AI/ML technologies for automated website adaptation in 2021, the acquisition of Silicon Valley-based Webshare in 2022, and the development of AI-powered tools like OxyCopilot in 2024.
Under Černiauskas's leadership, Oxylabs grew to over 500 employees, amassed more than 100 patents, and was consistently ranked among the fastest-growing European companies in the Financial Times' FT1000 report. The company also built partnerships with dozens of Fortune Global 500 companies.
His transition to Co-founder and Chairman of the Board — effective from March 2026 according to his LinkedIn profile — is not a departure from Oxylabs. Rather, Černiauskas will now focus on strategic direction and the long-term initiatives that will define the next decade of web intelligence. This is a natural evolution for a founder who has built the company to the point where dedicated operational leadership can drive day-to-day execution while the founder focuses on vision and strategy.
Why This Move Matters for the Proxy Industry
This leadership change is significant for several reasons. First, it represents a merging of expertise from two of the most prominent proxy brands operating under the Tesonet umbrella. Savickas brings a decade of experience building and scaling Decodo into a competitive force, while Černiauskas provides the institutional knowledge and strategic vision that made Oxylabs an industry leader.
Second, the move suggests that Oxylabs is preparing for its next phase of growth. Companies typically make leadership transitions like this when they are ready to shift from founder-driven innovation to execution-focused scaling. With Savickas — known for his operational expertise and track record of building teams that deliver results — at the helm, Oxylabs appears to be positioning itself for aggressive expansion.
Third, the appointment of a CEO from a sister company within the same corporate group is noteworthy. It signals deep trust in Savickas's capabilities and suggests that Tesonet sees value in cross-pollinating leadership across its portfolio. It also raises questions about the future direction of Decodo — will a new CEO be appointed, or will the company be more closely integrated with Oxylabs operations?
The Tesonet Connection
To understand the full picture, it helps to know the corporate structure. Tesonet, founded in 2008 by Tomas Okmanas and Eimantas Sabaliauskas in Vilnius, Lithuania, is the parent company behind several major tech brands. Its portfolio includes Nord Security (NordVPN, NordPass, NordLocker), Surfshark, Oxylabs, Decodo (formerly Smartproxy), and several other ventures including nexos.ai.
Oxylabs was founded by Tesonet in 2015 and has grown to become one of the largest proxy providers in the world, with over 177 million IPs and 15,000+ clients. Decodo, originally established as Smartproxy in 2018, was also part of the Tesonet portfolio and has carved out its own niche, particularly among developers and scaling teams looking for self-service proxy solutions.
While the two companies have operated as distinct brands with different market positioning — Oxylabs targeting enterprise clients and Decodo focusing on self-service and developer-friendly solutions — the appointment of Decodo's CEO to lead Oxylabs suggests a potential convergence of strategies.
What This Means for Oxylabs Users
For existing Oxylabs customers, the leadership change should not cause any immediate disruption. The company has emphasized that this restructuring is about accelerating innovation while maintaining the reliable, ethical, and scalable web intelligence solutions that clients depend on.
Savickas's experience with self-service platforms and developer-friendly tools at Decodo could bring positive changes to Oxylabs's product experience. Users might see improvements in onboarding, API usability, and pricing flexibility — areas where Decodo has traditionally excelled compared to Oxylabs's more enterprise-focused approach.
With Černiauskas still actively involved as Chairman, the strategic direction and commitment to ethical data practices that have defined Oxylabs should remain intact. The combination of Černiauskas's vision with Savickas's operational prowess could prove to be a powerful partnership for the company's next chapter.
Timeline of Key Events
2008: Tesonet founded in Vilnius, Lithuania by Tomas Okmanas and Eimantas Sabaliauskas.
2015: Oxylabs founded by Tesonet, enters the proxy market.
2018: Smartproxy (now Decodo) established under the Tesonet portfolio.
2019 (September): Julius Černiauskas becomes CEO of Oxylabs.
2022: Oxylabs acquires Webshare, a Silicon Valley-based proxy company.
2025 (April): Smartproxy rebrands to Decodo under Vytautas Savickas's leadership.
2026 (March 25): Oxylabs announces leadership restructuring — Savickas becomes CEO, Černiauskas moves to Chairman of the Board.
Our Take
At BestProxyFinder, we see this as a positive development for the proxy industry. Leadership transitions at major companies like Oxylabs tend to bring fresh perspectives and renewed energy. Savickas has proven himself as a capable leader at Decodo, and his operational focus should complement Černiauskas's strategic vision well.
We will be closely watching how this change impacts Oxylabs's product offerings, pricing strategy, and competitive positioning in the months ahead. If you are considering Oxylabs for your proxy needs, you can read our detailed Oxylabs review for a comprehensive breakdown of their services, pricing, and performance.
For those also interested in Decodo's services, check out our Decodo (formerly Smartproxy) review to see how the two companies compare.
