How Shawn Flynn Is Building Silicon Valley's Most Powerful Knowledge Network and beyond.

In Silicon Valley's ecosystem of innovation, few have their finger on the pulse quite like Shawn Flynn. As host of The Silicon Valley Podcast and co-founder of Create the Future Summit, Flynn has positioned himself at the intersection of technology, investment, and community-building—creating platforms that don't just discuss the future but actively shape it.

"Podcasting isn't just about information transfer," Flynn explains during our BigCdotWorks Conversation Series interview. "It's about creating a unique connection with community."

This wasn't a typical interview. True to the "conversation" in our series title, Flynn and I exchanged questions and ideas, with the podcast host occasionally reversing roles and drawing out my thoughts on urban design and technology—a refreshing dynamic that led us into unexpected territories.

THE SILICON VALLEY CONNECTOR

Since 2018, Flynn's podcast has released weekly episodes every Wednesday, featuring guests like Jim McKelvey (Block co-founder), Melanie Perkins (Canva CEO), and Avram Miller (Intel Capital co-founder). Named "#1 Silicon Valley Podcast to Follow" by Feedspot, the show has become essential listening for entrepreneurs and investors alike.

Flynn operates from Silicon Valley's epicenter as an investment specialist and entrepreneur, collaborating with incubators, accelerators, VCs, government agencies, and academic institutions to influence the broader startup ecosystem.

"What makes the podcast work is depth," Flynn says. "I'm not interested in surface-level conversations that could have been generated by AI. I want the human stories behind the technology—the failures, pivots, and unexpected insights that shaped success."

CREATE THE FUTURE SUMMIT: REIMAGINING POSSIBILITY

The Create the Future Summit represents Flynn's vision beyond podcasting—a convergence point where government, capital, art, and community intersect to envision what comes next.

"The summit isn't just another tech conference," Flynn emphasizes. "It's an experimental space where diverse perspectives collide to create something new."

The 2024 summit, held June 7th at UC Berkeley, covered AI, quantum computing, space technology, Web3, blockchain, art and design, climate tech, women investors, and policy innovation. It featured keynotes from Berkeley's new Chancellor and the Chair of Côte d'Ivoire's Economic, Social and Cultural Council—highlighting its global ambitions.

Looking ahead to the 2025 summit scheduled for August 14th at Werqwise in San Francisco, Flynn is crafting an event focused on connecting policymakers with global community leaders.

"Technology without policy is just potential," he notes. "We need both innovators and decision-makers in the same room."

THE POWER OF DISTRIBUTED INFLUENCE

Our conversation deepened when discussing international expansion strategy. Flynn isn't interested in celebrity speakers—he wants people with real decision-making power.

"I'm looking for former Cisco R&D heads who managed billion-dollar operations and now lead near-unicorn startups," he explains. "Or the French Consul General in San Francisco who bridges policy and industry. People who can actually make things happen."

This approach reflects Flynn's understanding of today's distributed entrepreneurial landscape: "Founders aren't limited to Silicon Valley anymore. With a phone and internet connection, you can build from New York, Dubai, Singapore, South Korea or Colombia. Our summit needs to reflect this distributed power."

CITIES AS LABORATORIES OF CHANGE

The conversation took an unexpected turn when we discussed future cities—a topic where I, as the interviewer, found myself suddenly in the spotlight.

Flynn's journalistic instincts kicked in, and he began asking me about my project, Sim Eternal City (also called the 18 Minutes City)—an experimental urban vision that reimagines how cities handle death and memory through digital archives, XR memorial spaces, and mobility-based second funerals instead of traditional cemeteries.

"That's fascinating," Flynn responded. "You're not just designing a 'livable city'—you're integrating memory, technology, life, and death. That's exactly the kind of holistic thinking we need at Create the Future Summit."

This exchange highlighted the natural alignment between Flynn's work and forward-thinking urban design—both using technology, policy, community, and cultural imagination to envision new possibilities.

BUILDING THE KNOWLEDGE INFRASTRUCTURE

Flynn describes himself as an "architect of knowledge infrastructure," connecting the people who are building the future.

"Everything I do comes down to six C's," he explains. "Create, Cast, Community, Capital, Company, and the two most important—Communication and Connection. Real change happens when the right people connect in meaningful ways."

As our conversation ended, it was clear this wasn't just an interview but a crossing of philosophies and visions. Through platforms like The Silicon Valley Podcast and Create the Future Summit, Flynn isn't just documenting innovation—he's catalyzing it by bringing together the people who can turn possibilities into realities.

BigC.Works Magazine's Conversation Series continues to capture these intersection points, exploring how cities and people, technology and memory, future and mortality can be reimagined through collaborative dialogue.