In the version Veldan's playing, I think it changes the timeline too. IIRC, 1.8 is the version that first added the caps to how early they could come.

Either way, JumpDrive = unbidden, Sentient AI = AI Uprising. NPC research of those techs counts too. Both of them start the dice rolling each month to see whether that crisis is triggered, and if neither are triggered before a secret timer expires, you'll get the Prethoryn invasion.