Facebook's Prineville, Oregon data center uses servers designed by Facebook itself. But they're built in China. Photo: Pete Erickson/Wired.com

Facebook is turning the server world on its head by going directly to Taiwan for custom-built machines. Except that it’s actually going to China.

Following in the footsteps of Google, Facebook is working with Taiwan-based outfits such as Quanta to design its own servers, but these machines are manufactured in Shanghai, on the Chinese mainland. According to Amir Michael — the Facebook engineer who oversees the design of these machines — the server market i...