In this powerful episode of The Hype Pod, we sit down with Erik Forton, the new COO of Vive Church, whose story weaves together Silicon Valley success, deep personal transformation, and radical obedience to God’s call.

Erik shares how he went from nearly becoming a police officer to joining Facebook as employee #180, helping launch their Austin office, and leading at companies like Square, Dropbox, Uber, and Ramp. But it wasn’t just a journey of tech milestones — it was also one of spiritual reawakening.

From funemployed at HypeCon to stepping into what he calls his “dream shot,” Erik unpacks how his seasons of doubt, transition, and growth were all preparation for ministry. He opens up about his faith journey, how God used a single Hype encounter to re-ignite his confidence, and why bringing operational excellence to the Church matters more now than ever.

Whether you're in tech, ministry, or somewhere in between, this episode will challenge you to think bigger about calling, purpose, and legacy.

Links:
Amen Conference (https://amenexperience.com/)
Hype Network (https://www.hypenetwork.org/)
VIVE Church (https://www.vivechurch.org)
Vest Fund (https://vestfund.org/)

---
Each episode of the HYPE POD is a Hype Network conversation about innovation, technology, and other market trends from a faith-filled perspective. Some are from our LIVE events [Hype Sessions], and some are off-the-cuff between Adam Smallcombe, Vance Roush, Arun Koshy and Katrina Macaraeg. We hope these conversations fuel innovative ideas and give you the confidence to continue building with kingdom principles. Recorded at Overflow Studios, Silicon Valley

Questions or feedback?
[email protected]
www.hypenetwork.org

The Hype Network is a growing global community of kingdom-minded industry experts, bold investors, tenacious entrepreneurs, thought leaders, ministry innovators, and faith-based disruptors. We gather in person and digitally to connect, create and collaborate to make a lasting impact on the people and industries we lead - the goal is innovative ministry acceleration.