IDO is an abbreviation of Initial DEX Offering (IDO), an IDO is a crypto token offering run on a Decentralized Exchange (DEX). Liquidity pools (LP) play an essential role in IDO's by creating liquidity post-sale. A typical IDO lets users lock funds in exchange for new tokens during the token generation event. Some of the raised funds are then added with the new token to an LP before being returned later to the project.
IDOs provide a cheap and simple way for projects to distribute their tokens. IDOs have been around for a while, but they are still evolving and providing new models like the Initial Farm Offering (IFO). We may also see increasing KYC requirements as the area becomes more regulated.