diff --git a/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/call-signatures.ts b/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/call-signatures.ts
index 8e30e8b82..65a013bf3 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/call-signatures.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/src/frontend/lowering/call-signatures.ts
@@ -13,7 +13,12 @@ import {
   typeEquals,
 } from "../../ir/ir.js";
 import { isJsSourceFile, isNodeEsmFile } from "../program.js";
-import { genResultRecord, jsOpenObjectType } from "../type-mapper.js";
+import {
+  genResultRecord,
+  isUnitOnlyTsType,
+  jsOpenObjectType,
+  unitOnlyUnion,
+} from "../type-mapper.js";
 import { dynFallbackType } from "./lowerer.js";
 import { builtinModuleFnOf } from "./surfaces.js";
 import { mixinFnShapeOf } from "./lower-mixins.js";
@@ -373,7 +378,7 @@ export function paramShapes(
     const tsType = symbol
       ? lowerer.checker.getTypeOfSymbol(symbol)
       : lowerer.typeOf(declParam.name);
-    const mapped = jsOpenObjectType(
+    let mapped = jsOpenObjectType(
       declParam,
       lowerer.runtimeOptionalBindingType(
         declParam.name,
@@ -382,6 +387,11 @@ export function paramShapes(
       lowerer.shapes,
       lowerer.unions,
     );
+    // An instantiation with a literal `undefined` argument (`id(undefined)`
+    // binds T = undefined): standalone undefined maps to VOID (the return
+    // convention), and a parameter is a value position, so it takes the
+    // unit-only slot like a declared `v: undefined` parameter.
+    if (mapped?.kind === "void" && isUnitOnlyTsType(tsType)) mapped = unitOnlyUnion(lowerer.unions);
     if (!mapped || mapped.kind === "void")
       lowerer.badType(blameOf?.(declParam, i) ?? declParam.name, tsType);
     if (declParam.dotDotDotToken) {
diff --git a/tests/corpus/generic-undefined-argument.ts b/tests/corpus/generic-undefined-argument.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..97d438549
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/corpus/generic-undefined-argument.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+// A generic call with a literal `undefined` argument binds T = undefined;
+// the parameter holds undefined like a declared `v: undefined` parameter.
+function kind<T>(v: T): string {
+  return typeof v;
+}
+console.log(kind(undefined), kind(null), kind(1), kind("s"));
+function same<T>(a: T, b: T): boolean {
+  return a === b;
+}
+console.log(same(undefined, undefined));
+function wrap<T>(v: T): { v: T } {
+  return { v };
+}
+const w = wrap(undefined);
+console.log(JSON.stringify(w), w.v === undefined, "v" in w);
+function describe<T>(label: string, v: T): string {
+  return `${label}=${String(v)}`;
+}
+console.log(describe("u", undefined));