Free-to-Own is a distribution model for NFTs where the tokens can be minted for free by the community. The creator does not take any revenue upfront and instead relies upon royalties to generate revenue which is then invested into the project. This aligns incentives between the team and the community in a better way. Free-to-Own is in contrast to typical mints where you have to pay to mint an NFT.
This term was pioneered by Limit Break and their DigiDaigaku NFT collection.