He subsequently attended the University of Rochester where he received an M. Phil in operations research and a PhD in business administration.

After he earned his doctorate, he joined the faculty at New York University, where his work focuses on the transformation of business and society by information technologies, and the Indian economy.

His research papers illustrate how these distinctive economics of information technologies warrant new pricing strategies,[6][7] careful digital rights management,[8][9] and a deeper understanding of network structure and dynamics.

[10][11] Sundararajan periodically writes and speaks about transformation through information technologies and business[12][13] with a frequent focus on privacy[14][15][16] and on India.

[17][18][19][20] He has been elected to the editorial boards of the prestigious journals Management Science and Information Systems Research (where he is currently a Senior Editor[21]).