<p>Grounded in Social Cognitive Career Theory and Distributed Cognition Theory, this study investigates the mechanism through which teachers’ transformational leadership influences college students’ employability in the context of generative artificial intelligence. Employing a stratified cluster sampling approach, questionnaire data were collected from 311 undergraduates across two universities in Zhejiang Province. The findings reveal that students’ perceived teachers’ transformational leadership not only directly and positively influences their employability but also exerts indirect effects through three distinct pathways: the single mediating role of problem-based learning, the single mediating role of self-efficacy, and the chain mediating role of problem-based learning and self-efficacy. Furthermore, a moderated chain mediation model demonstrates that higher levels of generative artificial intelligence usage among students strengthen the chain mediating effect of problem-based learning and self-efficacy in the relationship between perceived teachers’ transformational leadership and employability. These results elucidate the intrinsic mechanism by which teachers’ transformational leadership impacts college students’ employability empowered by generative artificial intelligence and extend the application of Social Cognitive Career Theory and Distributed Cognition Theory within the domain of employability research.</p>