Gold’s (GC=F) recent breakout to record highs has investors optimistic about silver (SI=F) as well.

The commodity often referred to as gold's "little brother" has been hovering above $28 an ounce, up roughly 23% over the past two months, versus a 19% rise for the yellow precious metal during the same period.

“The typical pattern for silver is — gold is the leader. [It] breaks out first, and then within a few months silver kind of takes charge and slingshots by. We’re starting to see that,” Sprott Asset Management CEO John Ciampaglia told Yahoo Finance this week.

The bulls aren't just following price trends. They're also looking at demand, specifically silver's growing industrial use in the green energy transition.

“We see very strong buying coming from India for silver, as well as steady consumption of silver for the use of solar panels, which is being built out at record amounts around the world right now,” Ciampaglia said.

The use of silver in industrial applications hit a new high in 2023 for a third consecutive year, according to data released on Wednesday by the Silver Institute, an industry nonprofit.

“Ongoing structural gains from green economy applications underpinned these advances,” said the report, citing higher-than-expected capacity and adoption for solar panels.

The Silver Institute expects the metal's supply to decrease by 1% this year, resulting in the second-largest market deficit in more than 20 years. The industry group also expects demand to expand beyond the energy transition in coming years.

“For example, silver will become an indispensable material as artificial intelligence (AI) rises. End uses expected to incorporate silver in AI include transportation, nanotechnology, biotechnology, healthcare, consumer wearables, computing, and energy in data centers,” said the report.

Silver last closed at a record high just above $48 per ounce in April 2011.

Ines Ferre is a senior business reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X at @ines_ferre.